RE: Pensions going unpaid23 Jan 2026 11:43
Everything savage garden posted around civil service pensions is at best ill informed and worse a complete lie.
I’ve previously posted briefly on my own experiences with civil service pensions and the improved services since Capital took over.
Firstly regardless of his AI source, the ask is for a minimum of one month’s notice, retirement recommends three months.
Pension quotes are automatically issued on an annual basis to all staff.
I partially retired in March 2019 at 50, gave three months notice under the old service provider, the first step is to inform your line manager in writing, line manager then notifies SSCL the outsource HR and salary service provider. SSCL’s target (usually missed is to notify civil service pensions within 6 weeks but SSCL DO NOT PROVIDE civil Service pensions with a final calculation until your final salary payment has been calculated. Having given the full 3 months notice I finally received my lump sum and first pension payment in June 2019. So the old service provider missed the target dates by three months.
August 2025 I informed that I would fully retire from October 2025. So not quite 3 months notice SSCL were notified again failed to meet the 6 weeks target date to inform Civil Service pensions. I started emailing civil service pensions in August asking for my McCloud remedy quote informing them that I intended to retire. The McCloud remedy quotes were being issued between March 2025 and March 2026 on a rolling basis, I send multiple emails because the remedy quotes giving me two options stay in classic or move to Alpha + would impact my final lump sum and monthly pension. I never received a replay or my pension.
After the change over I again contacted Civil Service pensions (now administered by Capital) using the new ‘contact us form on the website). Within 10 days I received a reply from a named person who would be my contact for my claim, promising a McCloud calculation within 10 days, and apologising for the delay explaining that they had inherited a backlog of claims. The calculation arrived within the 10 days I then made my McCloud choice and received the payment within two weeks, my final pension lump sum and revised monthly payment was in my account 2 weeks later.
So for me a much better service, Capita provided an answer within 10 days that the previous service provider failed to do in 3 months. Sorry that was so lengthy but I couldn’t allow savage garden to post his one sided lies without challenge.