Ill Health Pension Policy

PensionBee Ill Health Pension Policy

For a customer to qualify for an ill health pension they must be unable to carry out any occupation - not just their own.

We will require a signed declaration from a Registered Medical Professional confirming that the customer is, and will continue to be, unable to work due to their incapacity. We may require confirmation from either two independent Registered Medical Professionals or one Registered Medical Professional of our choosing. The ill health form should be provided to customers who enquire about receiving an ill health pension.

We will request that the doctor confirms whether there are any available treatments for the condition(s) and if so, the likelihood of their success.

The HMRC conditions for payment of an ill health pension are that the recipient is, and will continue to be, incapable of continuing their/an occupation. Whilst the payment of the ill health pension is ultimately at our discretion, we will seek guidance from the doctor as to the permanence of the condition. By way of a benchmark, we will typically only allow early payment on the grounds of ill health if the doctor believes that any available treatment has a less than 20% chance of resolving the condition(s). We appreciate that not all Medical Professionals will provide an opinion on a percentage basis and we will approach these situations on a case by case basis, requesting further information where necessary. Taking a pension early for health reasons, or ‘ill-health retirement’, is designed to replace income from employment, due to being permanently incapable of carrying on that occupation through ill-health. We’ll therefore need the doctor to comment on your medical condition(s) dating back to the date of medical retirement.

Any associated fees must be borne by the customer either personally or from the value of their pension with us.

The customer must sign a declaration confirming that they are not carrying out any work and do not expect to return to work as a result of their incapacity.

The completed declaration must be sent to us via post, however, a scanned version of it can be emailed while we wait to receive the original copy. This will minimise any delays to the request.

The customer must be able to provide evidence that they are not in employment. This should be in the form of their last three months bank statements, their most recent P60/P45 and/or evidence of relevant benefits being paid from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).

We may require a new medical opinion and the above evidence on an annual basis where the customer is taking regular benefits or as and when benefits are requested if less frequent.

We understand that other pension providers may have different requirements for ill health conditions so customers may wish to take this into consideration when looking to take ill health benefits.

PensionBee Serious Ill Health Lump Sum Policy:

In order for a customer to qualify for a serious ill health lump sum they must have a life expectancy of less than 12 months.

We will require a signed declaration from a Registered Medical Professional confirming that they expect the customer to live for less than 12 months. We may require confirmation from either two independent Registered Medical Professionals or one Registered Medical Professional of our choosing.

Any associated fees must be borne by the customer either personally or from the value of their pension with us.

The customer must sign a declaration confirming that they have a life expectancy of less than 12 months and would like to take their full uncrystallised pension as a serious ill health lump sum. A serious ill-health lump sum cannot be taken from crystallised funds, meaning funds which have previously been designated into drawdown for the payment of pension benefits.

The completed declaration must be sent to us via post, however, a scanned version of it can be emailed while we wait to receive the original copy. This will minimise any delays to the request.

Timings

Once all necessary information and documentation has been received, checked and finalised, your ill health payment could take up to 3 weeks to reach your bank account.

Contact

You should contact us if you have questions or need assistance:

Phone: 020 3457 8444
Email: [email protected]