Nhs Pension Scheme · CAS-63106-F3Z0

CAS-63106-F3Z0

Ombudsman’s Determination Applicant Ms T

Scheme NHS Pension Scheme (the Scheme)

Respondents NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) Stoke Gifford Medical Centre (the Practice)

Outcome

Background information, including submissions from the parties

(6) An employing authority must, in respect of a person, keep a record of all—

(a) contributions paid under regulations 2.C.1, 2.C.8 or 2.C.10; (b) contributions due under regulations 2.C.1, 2.C.8 or 2.C.10, but unpaid; (c) contributions paid under regulation 2.C.5; (d) contributions due under regulation 2.C.5, but unpaid; (e) hours or sessions referred to in regulation 2.A.3; (f) pensionable pay or, in the case of non-GP Provider, pensionable earnings; (g) absences from work referred to in regulation 2.A.4; (h) commencement and termination of pensionable employment; (i) reasons for termination of pensionable employment.

[…]”

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“6 Active member status preservation

Unless otherwise provided in these Regulations, a transition member who is an active member of the new scheme is to be treated, for the purposes of the old scheme, as though they continue to be an active member of the old scheme notwithstanding the operation of section 18(1) of the 2013 Act.

[…]

14 Determination of pensionable pay, final pensionable pay and reckonable pay

(2) For any purpose of the old scheme including the calculation of benefits payable under that scheme to or in respect of a 2008 officer transition member or a non-pensionable 2008 Section member, the member's pensionable pay and reckonable pay are to be determined by reference to the 2008 Regulations…”.

“Please be aware this is an estimate and shown for guidance only. You should check the amount of [pensionable earnings] quoted is consistent with your current pay…If the figure is significantly different you should contact your employer…”

With regard to ‘Pay’ the 2016 ABS explained that this was:

“The average of the best three consecutive years full time equivalent pensionable pay (at last update) in the last ten used to calculate your officer benefits. This will be recalculated at retirement based on your final 10 years pay, and is therefore subject to change…”

2 CAS-63106-F3Z0 On 2 October 2018, Ms T downloaded another benefit statement via the member portal (the 2018 ABS). Based on pensionable ‘Pay’ of £86,136.45, it quoted benefits including a maximum PCLS of £16,822.71 and a residual pension of £2,523.41 a year under the 2008 Section.

The disclaimer previously included in the 2016 ABS was also quoted in the 2018 ABS.

On 3 October 2018, Ms T telephoned NHS BSA and was provided with information regarding the possibility of early retirement.

On 20 June 2019, Ms T downloaded another ABS via the member portal (the June 2019 ABS). Based on pensionable ‘Pay’ of £86,136.45, it quoted a maximum PCLS of £16,822.71 and a residual pension of £2,523.41 a year under the 2008 Section.

The June 2019 ABS included the same explanation of pensionable ‘Pay’ and the disclaimer that were previously contained in the 2016 ABS.

On 8 August 2019, Ms T telephoned NHS BSA to discuss her benefit entitlements and was provided with details regarding the Scheme’s early retirement factors, trivial commutation and how to make a retirement claim.

On 6 September 2019, Ms T downloaded another annual benefit statement via the member portal (the September 2019 ABS). It quoted pensionable ‘Pay’ of £88,520.44 and a maximum PCLS of £17,288.36, plus a residual pension of £2,593.25 per year.

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When an employer provides new service and salary details via the employer portal, this does not result in a “real time” update in a member’s annual benefit statement in the member portal. The updates in the annual benefit statements are not entered manually by NHS BSA. The details are captured automatically each year via a ‘data cut’ to process the latest details provided by each employer.

The Practice updated Ms T’s service and salary details for the 2015/2016 Scheme year via the employer portal on 29 May 2020. Such updates overwrite any previous records. So, it is not possible to check the employer portal for any historic service and salary details provided by the Practice for Ms T. When such updates are received, an assessment is normally undertaken to establish whether this would affect a pension due for payment.

Due to the COVID19 pandemic in May 2020, NHS BSA staff had limited access to online systems. So, priority was given, at that time, to the calculation and payment of members’ initial benefits. Consequently, there was a delay, which meant there was insufficient time to review Ms T’s record in the normal way.

The retirement notice sent to Ms T, on 26 March 2020, was a system generated letter. NHS BSA’s system automatically completes the included information from a member’s online record based on information provided by their employer.

Calls are recorded and held for six months so it is not now possible to listen to those held with Ms T in 2018 and 2019. However, the call handlers update a member’s record with a basic overview of each telephone conversation.

During the telephone call on 9 December 2019, the call handler said that Ms T could produce her own retirement quotation via the Calculator or contact the Practice to ask for one. Ms T was also informed that a charge would be applicable if NHS BSA provided a retirement quotation.

There is no record of the Practice telephoning the Online Pensions Team following the enquiry of 13 December 2019.

9 CAS-63106-F3Z0 If the Practice had asked for a retirement quotation on Ms T’s behalf in December 2019, and simultaneously provided updated service and salary details, NHS BSA would have provided it for free. The Practice could also have calculated a free retirement quotation for Ms T via the employer portal.

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Adjudicator’s Opinion

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Ms T and NHS BSA accepted the Adjudicator’s Opinion, but the Practice did not, so the complaint was passed to me to consider. The Practice and NHS BSA provided their further comments, which do not change the outcome. I have considered the additional points raised by the Practice and also NHS BSA, but I agree with the Adjudicator's Opinion.

The Practice’s additional comments

The incorrect annual benefit statements that Ms T downloaded in 2018 and 2019 did not result from incorrect service and salary details submitted to NHS BSA by the Practice for the 2015/2016 Scheme year in April 2016. An update quoting Ms T’s pensionable salary as £13,384 a year was appropriately provided at that time. So, this data was not amended in May 2020.

Lentell’s, the Practice’s new payroll administrator, emailed NHS BSA on 28 May 2020 and sought assistance in updating Ms T’s service and salary details for the period 25 March 2020 to 31 March 2020 only, as the employer portal was “corrupted”.

That update was successfully uploaded via the Employer portal on 29 May 2020. Healthpay has also confirmed that no updates of Ms T’s service and salary details were submitted in December 2019, March 2020, or April 2020. However, it later confirmed that confirmation of Ms T’s service and salary details was submitted around the time it sent her retirement claim in January 2020, but it did not have a copy of this submission. 13 CAS-63106-F3Z0 NHS BSA had provided Ms T with the March 2020 Statement quoting correct benefit details. So, it is also unclear how the service and salary details provided in May 2020 could have been used by NHS BSA to generate the figures quoted in that statement. NHS BSA ought to hold a history of all the amendments that have been made to Ms T’s service and salary details and when.

NHS BSA missed several opportunities to identify the errors in Ms T’s annual benefit statements before the misinformation was provided in the December 2019 Letter. Ms T has confirmed that the retirement figures provided prior to December 2019 were “crucial” as she was considering buying a house. So, she contacted NHS BSA on numerous occasions seeking clarification of her benefit entitlement and was not made aware of any errors.

During Ms T’s telephone call to NHS BSA on 9 December 2019, the call handler should have identified Ms T’s significantly inflated service and salary details. The distress and inconvenience Ms T suffered was partly caused by her numerous telephone calls to NHS BSA to check the incorrect annual benefits statements she had downloaded in 2018 and 2019. She was then provided with inadequate responses.

Ms T’s retirement claim form was received on 17 December 2019, requesting a retirement date of 23 March 2020. This left four working days to process the form to meet the three-month deadline for completing a retirement claim. So, the Practice had little time to do so, especially due to the approaching Christmas holiday.

Lentells was also busy in December 2019 and the Practice had staff on annual leave, added to the fact that it was starting to risk assess a potential COVID-19 pandemic. However, Ms T needed confirmation of her benefit details quickly to secure a mortgage for her house purchase.

Ms T had ‘already decided to purchase a house’ at the time the December 2019 Letter was provided. However, Ms T also failed to clarify that she had previously downloaded the 2016 ABS quoting significantly lower figures than those quoted in the September 2019 ABS.

NHS BSA’s additional comments

The amended service and salary details that the Practice provided via the employer portal in May 2020 covered the period between 25 March 2020 to 1 April 2020. The updated details also covered several Scheme years including 2015/2016, 2016/2017, 2017/2018, 2018/2019 and 2019/2020.

Mrs T was an active member of the 2008 Section when she transitioned into the 2015 Section. So, under the 2015 Regulations, Ms T’s membership is treated as continuous, even though it was not possible for her to accrue further pensionable service in that part of the Scheme after 31 March 2015.

14 CAS-63106-F3Z0 Due to Ms T’s continuous service, there remains a pay link between the 2008 Section and the 2015 Section when calculating her benefits. Consequently, the amended service and salary details provided by the Practice in May 2020 also relates to Ms T’s retirement benefit calculations under the 2008 Section.

Ombudsman’s decision

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I partly uphold Ms T’s complaint.

Directions

Anthony Arter CBE

Deputy Pensions Ombudsman 16 May 2024

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