If you are suffering from ill health which stops you from working (which we refer to as incapacity), you may be allowed to start taking your pension at any age (i.e. before the minimum retirement age, currently 55 but increasing to 57 from 6 April 2028). Incapacity is ill health that the Trustee believes is serious enough to prevent you from following your normal occupation and seriously impairs your earning ability.
If the Company supports your application and the Trustee agrees to you retiring as a result of incapacity (after you have provided acceptable medical evidence), the value of your Pension Account will be increased. This increase is equal to one month’s Pensionable Earnings for each complete year you could have continued to work for the Company from the date of your ill health retirement up to the Scheme’s Normal Retirement Age of 65 (subject to a maximum of 24 years).
If the Trustee believes that your ill health is so serious that you will be unable to work for the Company, for any other employer or for yourself at any level of pay, this is known as total incapacity. In this case, the increase to your Pension Account will be equal to three months’ Pensionable Earnings for each complete year you could have continued to work for the Company from the date of your ill health retirement to the Scheme’s Normal Retirement Age of 65. Under total incapacity, the 24 year maximum does not apply.
Important - if you are an active member and joined the Scheme after 1st September 2012, you must provide information on any pre-existing medical conditions to be covered by the Scheme's death in service and ill health benefits. You can check if you are covered by looking at your most recent benefit statement or by calling the team on 0800 090 2267. If you're not covered, you can find out what you need to do by clicking here.