Taking your benefits

Before applying, it’s important you understand all of the options available to you, particularly when you can retire and the different ways of taking your benefits.

You can find more information using the links below: 

• Your retirement options web page  
• Your member booklet

To begin the process for taking your pension, you need to contact the Scheme administrator, Railpen, and let them know when you want to start taking your benefits and whether you plan to leave the Company or remain employed.  

If you intend to start taking your benefits on, or after, your Normal Pension Age, then you should contact Railpen at least 3 months before you want your pension to start.

If you want to take your benefits earlier than your Normal Pension Age, you should contact Railpen at least 6 months before your chosen payment date.

You can find Railpen’s details on the get in touch page.

Once you’ve been in touch, Railpen will process your request and will send you a retirement quotation, along with details of your benefit options and any forms you need to complete. This is typically done within 10 working days of your request.

The retirement quotation will show:

• the pension you might get
• your lump sum (if applicable)
  

The figures quoted at this stage aren’t guaranteed but should give you a good idea of what you can expect to get. 

You need to return the form(s) to Railpen, confirming how you want to take your pension and confirming your bank details. 

This should be done as soon as possible, particularly if you want to exercise any options beyond the standard pension and lump sum.

For example, if you want to:

• Exchange part of your pension for an additional lump sum – this must be done within the 2 months prior to your pension commencing.
  
• Exchange part of your pension for additional spouse’s/dependant’s pension – you must give notice in writing during the month before retirement.
  
• Exchange all or part of your lump sum for additional pension – you must give notice in writing during the month before retirement.
  

You can find more information about these options on the your retirement options page.

Once you accept your quotation, and confirm your choices, you cannot change your mind.

Railpen will process your forms and check they have all the information they need to start paying your benefits. If not, they will contact you as soon as possible for further details.

You will then get a letter just before, or around your retirement date, confirming what payments you are expected to get and when.

Railpen aim to pay your initial pension and lump sum within 10 working days of either, your retirement date, or when all of the necessary information has been received (whichever is later). That means your payments may be delayed if forms are returned late and may not start exactly on your chosen retirement date.

As a Final Salary member, your pension benefits are based on a proportion of your Pensionable Salary and the years of Contributing Service/Pensionable Service you have built up at the date of leaving.

Under the rules of the Scheme your Final Pensionable Salary (FPS) is calculated with reference to the Retail Prices Index (RPI) figure at your date of leaving. However, this figure is not usually published until after you have left the Scheme.

To ensure we can pay your pension benefits as close to your retirement date as possible, we will initially setup and pay these benefits without any RPI uplift and, where applicable, without your Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs).

Once your AVCs and the relevant month’s RPI are available we will then recalculate your benefits. If this results in an increase in your retirement benefits, we will send you a final statement confirming the new figures. This should normally be around 8 weeks after you retire. 

You can find out more about what happens once you’ve started taking your benefits in the pensioners section.