Retired Civil Servant to Be Forced Back into Work Over £25,000 Pension Error
A retired UK civil servant has been ordered to pay back £25,000 after a pension scheme error was discovered, forcing him to consider returning to work full-time. Derek Ritchie, 63, received the news in March that his payments had been miscalculated since 2014, leaving him facing a significant financial burden.
Ritchie claims he did not receive an explanation for the mistake, which has caused him considerable hardship. He says he has made decisions and planned for the future based on the incorrect figures, and now faces the prospect of working for years to pay off the debt.
The error is part of a larger issue with outsourced pension administration, according to Fran Heathcote, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union. "Errors and overpayments have been a feature of outsourced pension administration," she said. "Civil service pension administration should be done by civil servants under direct ministerial control."
The problem was first identified in 2019, when MyCSP, which manages civil service pensions on behalf of the Cabinet Office, admitted to trying to claw back £2.7m from overpayments made by more than 2,000 pensioners.
Ritchie's situation highlights the potential consequences for those affected by such errors. His income has been reduced by 13% a month, and MyCSP warned him that deducting a further 15% would be required to recover the debt if he agreed to a payment plan.
Pension providers have a legal duty to recover overpayments even when scheme members accept them in good faith. However, pensioners can argue that the debt may be reduced if they provide evidence of spending the money and suffering significant hardship by making repayments.
The Cabinet Office has said it sympathises with Ritchie but has a duty to recover public money paid out in error. The company managing the scheme, Capita, claims it brings expertise and innovation to the table, but Ritchie remains skeptical about the revised figures being correct.
For Ritchie, the mistake has left him feeling trapped. "Unless they are able to give me back the last 11 years and enable me to review and change my financial decisions, they've left me in a nightmare with no way out," he said.
A retired UK civil servant has been ordered to pay back £25,000 after a pension scheme error was discovered, forcing him to consider returning to work full-time. Derek Ritchie, 63, received the news in March that his payments had been miscalculated since 2014, leaving him facing a significant financial burden.
Ritchie claims he did not receive an explanation for the mistake, which has caused him considerable hardship. He says he has made decisions and planned for the future based on the incorrect figures, and now faces the prospect of working for years to pay off the debt.
The error is part of a larger issue with outsourced pension administration, according to Fran Heathcote, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union. "Errors and overpayments have been a feature of outsourced pension administration," she said. "Civil service pension administration should be done by civil servants under direct ministerial control."
The problem was first identified in 2019, when MyCSP, which manages civil service pensions on behalf of the Cabinet Office, admitted to trying to claw back £2.7m from overpayments made by more than 2,000 pensioners.
Ritchie's situation highlights the potential consequences for those affected by such errors. His income has been reduced by 13% a month, and MyCSP warned him that deducting a further 15% would be required to recover the debt if he agreed to a payment plan.
Pension providers have a legal duty to recover overpayments even when scheme members accept them in good faith. However, pensioners can argue that the debt may be reduced if they provide evidence of spending the money and suffering significant hardship by making repayments.
The Cabinet Office has said it sympathises with Ritchie but has a duty to recover public money paid out in error. The company managing the scheme, Capita, claims it brings expertise and innovation to the table, but Ritchie remains skeptical about the revised figures being correct.
For Ritchie, the mistake has left him feeling trapped. "Unless they are able to give me back the last 11 years and enable me to review and change my financial decisions, they've left me in a nightmare with no way out," he said.
This is just not right... I mean, what's the point of even having a pension system if it's gonna be messed up like this? £25,000 mistake? That's a big chunk of change for someone like Derek Ritchie who's already retired and supposed to be enjoying his golden years. And now he's being forced to go back to work just to pay off the debt? It's not fair. 
The government needs to sort out this mess with MyCSP and Capita - these companies need to be held accountable for their mistakes. And what about all the other pensioners who might've been affected by this error? Have they even received a notification? 
, who's gonna have to go back to work at 63? That's like trying to fit into a pair of jeans that are two sizes too small after eating an entire pizza by yourself 
. Seriously though, the government should sort out their pension system ASAP, it's not right that someone has to pay back £25k because of a mistake 
. I mean, what if he had used that extra cash to buy a nice house or travel the world? Now he's stuck paying it all back with no guarantee he'll get it back 
. Guess you could say MyCSP is having a bit of a "penalty" for not getting their admin right 
. £25,000 for a pension error that's been sitting there since 2014? That's not just a mistake, it's a bloody scam! 
Ritchie has his whole life planned around the incorrect figures and now he's being forced to go back to work, basically, because of some outsourcing company's incompetence. 
And what really gets my goat is that they're deducting 15% from his income every month, like that's going to make up for it 
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this is insane! someone who's already retired gets hit with a £25k debt because of a mistake made by a private company managing their pension. it's like being forced to go back into the workforce just to pay off a bill that wasn't even their fault. and what really gets me is that this has been going on for years, since 2019, and nobody seems to be taking responsibility for fixing the problem.
and what's worse, this is happening to people who are actually relying on their pensions to live comfortably in retirement. it's a nightmare for them, as Ritchie said, and it's just not right.
...
just to pay it back, and what if he didnt know about the mistake? didnt get any notice or explanation? that's just not right 
. I get that errors can happen, but this is a clear case of poor administration and lack of oversight. I'm with Fran Heathcote on this one - civil service pension administration should be done by civil servants under direct ministerial control, not outsourced to companies like Capita 
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the fact that pension providers have a duty to recover overpayments even when scheme members accept them in good faith is just wild 
.
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i feel so bad for this guy, my heart is literally breaking for him 
what if he didn't make any plans for retirement? what if he had kids or grandkids who are counting on him? 
. It's crazy to think about how something so small can make such a big difference. Anyway, back to pension errors... it's just frustrating when things go wrong like this, especially when people have made plans based on incorrect info 
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. £25,000 is a huge amount of money, especially when it's been miscalculated and affecting his whole life plan 
. The fact that he has to consider going back to work full-time because of this error is just not right 
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. The government needs to do something about this ASAP 
. It's not just about Derek's situation; it's about making sure that everyone who relies on their pensions can live with dignity and security 
. This is a clear case of where outsourcing has gone wrong 
.