STATE PENSION – WORTH KNOWING ABOUT!

There is much discussion in the media about people having to work longer because they will not have built up an adequate pension. We do see this failure to make adequate provision on virtually a daily basis. Sometimes it is because the person’s income will just not stretch to it and in other cases, people simply prefer not to worry about saving for the long term. In any case there is at least one area where virtually everyone who works can rely on as regards a pension income – the State Pension. It may not be huge but it is still worth having! Many people lack information about the State Pension and how it might affect them, so we decided to cover the basic points here.

In 2012/2013 the Basic State Pension payment for those who qualify is up to £107.45 per week. This payment goes up annually in line with inflation. This may not sound a great deal, but to get a similar pension income from a personal pension you would need to have saved up over £100,000. It is worth having! You might be interested to know that the concept of a UK State Pension did not come about until 1908. At that time you needed to be 70 or over and you would receive £31.50 per year!