Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Serps Claims

Serps Reviews First Blog
Welcome to MKFP Serps reviews first ever blog - we hope you will find it useful. The intention behind this blog is to help you put a little more meat on the bone of the world of Serps, the Serps reviews process and the whole tradgedy behind the Serps misselling saga that continues to haunt people even now. To apply for a serps compensation review please go to http://www.serpsreviews.co.uk/ and follow the links to the apply page.

So far this week we have had 25 new clients asking us to help them review their Serps complaints. The basis of the review and complaint service is this -

We get all the information from the company involved and then take it apart piece by piece. Once we have finished dissecting we put it back together again and contact you with our outcome. If there are any actions from the review, we put them into place and then start the claim. Everything we do before the serps claim helps towards the serps compensation claim and provides added leverage.

Go to http://www.serpsreviews.co.uk/ to apply now.

Interestingly, we are the only firm dealing with Serps claims that review the Serps first. How can you properly make a valid Serps complaint without understanding in depth the Serps pot? We don't feel you can.

Keep checking out this blog, you may find something of benefit. If in the meantime you want to start your Serps claim please contact us on 0117 9501234 or go to http://www.serpsreviews.co.uk/

Mark Knight






The rest of this post is only for Search engines, it is of no help to individuals. Please visit our main site for more information www.serpsreviews.co.uk


http://www.serpsclaims.blogspot.com

http://www.endowmentclaims.sm4.biz

http://www.pensiontransfer.sm4.biz

http://www.free-reviewcentre.sm4.biz

http://www.serpsreviews.co.uk/401.html

http://360.yahoo.com/lastwillandtestament

www.lowestcostendowmentclaims.co.uk

http://endowmentclaimsendowmentcompensation.blogspot.com

Tags

Serps, serps claim, serps claims, serps pension, serps compensation

endowment claims, endowment claim, endowment, missold endowment, endowment compensation



serps , serps pension, serps compensation, contracting out of serps, opting out of serps, serps misselling, serps pensions, serps claim, serps opt out, contracted out of serps, opt out of serps, contract out of serps, what is serps, inherited serps, opting back into serps, contracting out serps, serps claims, contracting back into serps, serps mis selling, serps calculator, contract back into serps, inheriting serps, serps advice, contracted out serps, serps contributions, opted out of serps, serps opting out, opt back into serps, serps valuation, serps rebates, serps review, serps uk, serps , s2p, serps in or out, serps rebate, br20, serps, state pension, serps, serps regulation, serps complaints, calculating serps, inheriting serps pension, serps form, how to contract back into serps, serps pension compensation, serps contract out, serps, serps miss selling, serps contracting in, serps 2, serps calculation, serps compensation claim, serps stands for, serps helpline, serps benefits, serps checker, should i contract out of serps, serps complaint, serps payments, opted out serps, compensation for opting out of serps, how to opt back into serps, opting back to serps, gmp serps, serps contract in, mel serps, serps opt in, inheritance of serps, serps gov,fsa serps, opt back in to serps, serps search, www serps,in or out of serps,serps contracted, for serps, serps contract, serps in, pension scheme serps

endowment claims
endowment compensation
endowment mortgage claims
endowment compensation assistance
endowment mortgage compensation, endowment policy claim, endowment compensation claims, endowment compensation center, endowment compensation claim, endowment claims uk, endowment compensation calculation, endowment compensation ltd, endowment claims com, endowment misselling claims, which endowment claims, endowment misselling claim, endowment mis selling claims, endowment claims companies, claims for endowment, endowment claim time, fsa endowment claims
endowment policies compensation, endowment misselling compensation, endowment compensation offer, endowment claim company, eca endowment compensation, calculate endowment compensation, mortgage endowment claim, endowment compensation recovery unit, low cost endowment claims, endowment compensation assistance uk
endowment claims time limit, endowment compensation uk, endowment claim time limit
eca endowment claims, endowment claims ltd, which endowment compensation, endowments claims, claim on endowment, endowments claim


SERPS Blog urls

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/12/serps-compensation-and-claims.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/12/mkfp-have-performed-serps-compensation.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/12/serps-compensation.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/12/opting-out-of-serps.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/12/serps-compensation-and-serps-claims.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/serps-claims-and-serps-compensation.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/serps-claims-wednesday-28th.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/serps-claims_26.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/friday-23rd.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/wednesday.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/tuesday-20th.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/saturday-17th-november.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/friday-serps-claims.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/serps-claims_15.html

http://serpsclaims.blogspot.com/2007/11/serps-claims.html

MKFP have performed SERPS compensation claims for over 2 years, we have even helped Which compile a report on endowment claims companies. Once you have been awarded compensation we will ask your provider to pay our fees. You will NOT need to pay us a fee. To see a list of companies that pay compensation CLICK HERE or we can help by calling 01179 501234You will receive 100% of your Serps compensation guaranteed.We will also provide free reports on SERPS claims and reviews. To apply call us on 0117 9501234 or click here The SERPS compensation amounts can be quite large sometimes over £15000.00; Under pension regulations, any money awarded to you will have to be paid into your pension plan. Click here to find out what this means to you.

Click here to applyMKFP Ltd recently helped Which magazine compile a report on endowment claims handlers. To take advantage of our Serps Compensation service, please complete the form before the cut off date and time.Click here to applyAs you were helping with my endowment claim we started discussing SERPS. With a letter of authority completed, the review and compensation was all done within 6 weeks.M Chalk HertsWe are especially interested in hearing from clients who have been contacted by firms who are requesting an upfront fee for a lesser service than we will provide without charge.We approach claims using our unique S M A R T process- Systematic, Measured, Accurate, Realistic and Targetted.Check out the customer questions regarding Serps compensation on the About us page.Click here to applyNo more uncertainties Should you be IN OR OUT!After the initial review process we will be able to formulate a plan of action. We are experts in the SERPs claims arena and although at the end of the process you will not understand the complex calculations, you will know what you should do. We hope to win you Serps Compensation.Ask us to help you and we will gather all the facts from the insurance company and all your concerns from you.SERPs is probably THE most complicated area in the pensions arena.Should you be opted in, should you be opted out! Click here for more information
Click here to applyWhat if my claim is unsuccessful? Only time will tell, but you don't have to prove anything, the onus is on the insurance company, not YOU!! We will keep working hard to get you as much Serps compensation as possible.The process is simple - Were you told the followingIt may not provide as much as the State scheme!There is an element of risk!If these were not made clear - Click here to applyFor your information, the regulators of MKFP stop us making any statements which could be misleading. Before we publish the website, it is checked and any statements are confirmed in writing to the regulator.MKFP are regulated by the Ministry of Justice in respect of regulated claims management activities.Our Authorisation number is CRM3996. Our registration is recorded on the following website; www.claimsregulation.gov.uk. You can verify our authorisation by visiting this website and entering our authorisation number.The State Earnings Related Pension Scheme was also known as the additional State Pension. It ran from 6 April 1978 to 5 April 2002 when it was reformed by the State Second Pension.A person who was in employment may have paid into SERPS.SERPS is paid from State Pension age to the person who has contributed to the scheme.There are also conditions that allow some or all of a person's SERPS entitlement to be inherited by their spouse husband, wife or civil partner when the SERPS contributor dies. Since 6 October 2002, the maximum amount of SERPS pension a person can inherit will now depend on the date that their late husband, wife or civil partner would have reached State Pension age.A person may have joined a private pension scheme instead of SERPS.This is called 'contracting-out'.Any SERPS earned from April 1978 to April 1997 is reduced if a person was contracted-out during that period. This reduction is called the 'contracted-out deduction'.From April 1997 to April 2002, a person who was contracted-out could earn no SERPS at all.The State Second Pension provides a more generous additional State Pension for low and moderate earners. Access has also been extended to include certain carers and people with long term illness and disability whose working lives have been interrupted or shortened. The inherited SERPS rules do not apply to State Second Pension.The maximum amount of State Second Pension a person may pass on to a surviving husband, wife or civil partner is 50%.The State Earnings Related Pension Scheme was set up in the UK in 1978 to provide a second government-run pension for those without occupational or personal pension schemes.It is paid for through a taxpayer's National Insurance contributions.The pension amount is based on an individual's earnings and National Insurance contributions during their working life.The more you earn over your working life, the more Serps you get, to an upper limit.As a general guide, Serps will be, at most, 20% of the average earnings on which a person has paid National Insurance contributions over their working life.Safety netEssentially it makes sure that every working person has some form of pension, on top of the basic state pension.Since the 1980s taxpayers have been able to opt out of Serps at any time, if they take out a personal pension or join a company pension scheme.This has become increasingly popular as the pension available for those who take out company and many personal pensions will be higher than Serps for those who have plenty of earnings years left before retirement.However, it is not necessarily in a person's interest to opt out of Serps in all cases.In return for opting out of Serps, individuals pay a lower rate of National Insurance and do not pay tax on their pension contributions.Serps is due to be replaced in 2002 by the State Second Pension.Those who will qualify for the new scheme include those who have not been building up Serps contributions because of looking after children or disabled people or having a long-term disability or illness themselves.A few months ago I wrote about the possible problems related to contracting out of the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme (SERPS). A study was carried out into the effects on retirement income of contracting out of SERPS, or the State Second Pension (S2P) as it's now known, and the results were quite interesting. Essentially, due to high investment charges and the poor performance of many private funds, a large number of the 7.5 million people who chose to contract out of SERPS/S2P would have been better off staying put.The SERPS pension scheme was introduced in 1978 and was replaced by S2P in 2002. It's essentially an additional State pension scheme that employed people are entitled to, and in the same way as for the basic State pension we contribute to it through our National Insurance contributions. The amount we receive at retirement therefore depends on how much we've paid in over our working lives.However, in an attempt to increase private pension contributions and reduce reliance on the State, the Government has allowed those with personal pensions to "contract out" of the SERPS/S2P scheme since 1988. Although National Insurance contributions remain the same, anyone who chooses to contract out will have a rebate (with tax relief added) paid into their personal or stakeholder pension each year.Interestingly, contracting out is back in the news this week as, following an 18-month battle, one pensioner has won his case against Prudential (LSE: PRU) for mis-advising him to contract out of SERPS back in 1980, which he claims has resulted in his retirement income being around £200 less each year than if he'd remained in the Government scheme. Despite the fact Prudential initially dismissed the claim, arguing that the risks associated were fully explained at the time, the Financial Ombudsman ruled in the claimants favour, causing the insurance company to review the case. It has now agreed to pay back the shortfall, in full. What's more, the complaints-handling firm that took on this case believes that it is by no means unique and may "open the floodgates to millions of similar claims".Of course, in the cases where risks were not adequately explained and false claims made then the case for mis-selling is strong. However, those that did understand the risks involved would be well aware that investment can go down as well as up. Would they feel differently about having contracted out if their stock market returns over the last ten years or so had been good?The decision whether or not to contract out of (or contract back into) S2P is certainly not an easy one. Many pension products advisers hold the view that we should not contract out of S2P and that if you have already, you should consider contracting back in. You really need to think about your own attitude to risk. And if you intend to rely on the Government for the majority of your income when you retire you should definitely stay contracted in. If you're concerned, here's some Basic advice1. Contracted In/Out?If you're not sure, give HM Revenue and Customs a ring on 0845 9150 150 to ask (have your National Insurance number to hand). It's worth noting that if you contracted out of SERPS, your contracting out certificate is likely to have automatically been applied to S2P without further paperwork.2. Pension ForecastSend off for a State pension forecast from the Department for Work and Pensions to find out how much you can expect.3. Have you lost out?Give your pension provider a call and ask for a personalised statement. This will compare your projected income from your contracted out personal pension to how much you would have received from staying contracted in. It's worth noting that those who contracted out and are members of a final salary schemes will not lose out as their employers have to ensure that their pension will be at least as good as if they had remained contracted in.Remember, too that if your retirement is a long way off you will see many Governments come and go, and many policy changes and broken pension promises. Also, remember to consider your retirement plans - if you intend to emigrate to a non-EU country you may find your State pension will remain frozen from year to year anyway, so contracting out and paying a bit more into your personal pension may be a better option for you.http://www.serpsclaims.blogspot.com/
http://www.endowmentclaims.sm4.biz/
http://www.pensiontransfer.sm4.biz/
http://www.free-reviewcentre.sm4.biz/
http://www.serpsreviews.co.uk/401.html
http://360.yahoo.com/lastwillandtestament
http://www.lowestcostendowmentclaims.co.uk/
http://endowmentclaimsendowmentcompensation.blogspot.com/TagsSerps, serps claim, serps claims, serps pension, serps compensationendowment claims, endowment claim, endowment, missold endowment, endowment compensationserps , serps pension, serps compensation, contracting out of serps, opting out of serps, serps misselling, serps pensions, serps claim, serps opt out, contracted out of serps, opt out of serps, contract out of serps, what is serps, inherited serps, opting back into serps, contracting out serps, serps claims, contracting back into serps, serps mis selling, serps calculator, contract back into serps, inheriting serps, serps advice, contracted out serps, serps contributions, opted out of serps, serps opting out, opt back into serps, serps valuation, serps rebates, serps review, serps uk, serps , s2p, serps in or out, serps rebate, br20, serps, state pension, serps, serps regulation, serps complaints, calculating serps, inheriting serps pension, serps form, how to contract back into serps, serps pension compensation, serps contract out, serps, serps miss selling, serps contracting in, serps 2, serps calculation, serps compensation claim, serps stands for, serps helpline, serps benefits, serps checker, should i contract out of serps, serps complaint, serps payments, opted out serps, compensation for opting out of serps, how to opt back into serps, opting back to serps, gmp serps, serps contract in, mel serps, serps opt in, inheritance of serps, serps gov,fsa serps, opt back in to serps, serps search, www serps,in or out of serps,serps contracted, for serps, serps contract, serps in, pension scheme serpsendowment claimsendowment compensationendowment mortgage claimsendowment compensation assistanceendowment mortgage compensation, endowment policy claim, endowment compensation claims, endowment compensation center, endowment compensation claim, endowment claims uk, endowment compensation calculation, endowment compensation ltd, endowment claims com, endowment misselling claims, which endowment claims, endowment misselling claim, endowment mis selling claims, endowment claims companies, claims for endowment, endowment claim time, fsa endowment claimsendowment policies compensation, endowment misselling compensation, endowment compensation offer, endowment claim company, eca endowment compensation, calculate endowment compensation, mortgage endowment claim, endowment compensation recovery unit, low cost endowment claims, endowment compensation assistance ukendowment claims time limit, endowment compensation uk, endowment claim time limiteca endowment claims, endowment claims ltd, which endowment compensation, endowments claims, claim on endowment, endowments claim





Keywords

Serps compensation.
We look to claim the highest level of Serps compensation.
If you win Serps compensation it will usually be paid into your Serps pension.
SERPS (the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme) was also known as the additional State Pension. It ran from 6 April 1978 to 5 April 2002 when it was reformed by the State Second Pension. A person who was in employment may have paid into SERPS.SERPS is paid from State Pension age to the person who has contributed to the scheme.There are also conditions that allow some or all of a person's SERPS entitlement to be inherited by their spouse husband, wife or civil partner when the SERPS contributor dies. Since 6 October 2002, the maximum amount of SERPS pension a person can inherit will now depend on the date that their late husband, wife or civil partner would have reached State Pension age.A person may have joined a private pension scheme instead of SERPS.This is called 'contracting-out'.Any SERPS earned from April 1978 to April 1997 is reduced if a person was contracted-out during that period. This reduction is called the 'contracted-out deduction'.From April 1997 to April 2002, a person who was contracted-out could earn no SERPS at all.The State Second Pension provides a more generous additional State Pension for low and moderate earners. Access has also been extended to include certain carers and people with long term illness and disability whose working lives have been interrupted or shortened. The inherited SERPS rules do not apply to State Second Pension. The maximum amount of State Second Pension a person may pass on to a surviving husband, wife or civil partner is 50%.
SERPS is the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme. This ran from 1978 to April 2002. SERPS is a second pension paid by the state on top of the basic State Pension. You will build up a SERPS pension if you paid any National Insurance contributions during this time – as long as: you were not a member of a contracted-out pension scheme you had not opted out of SERPS and instead had contributions from the state paid into a personal scheme of your choice.Unlike the basic state pension, any SERPS pension will depend on your earnings. Although SERPS has now been replaced by S2P you will still receive a SERPS pension if you have the right contributions record. People will be retiring for the next 40 years or so who will receive a SERPS pension. One advantage of a SERPS pension is that you can pass some of it on to a surviving spouse.
Working out your SERPS pension requires a complex set of calculations. If you want to get an estimate of your SERPS pension the best way is to get a pension forecast from the Pension Service website. Even the basic principles are far from straightforward, but this is how it works: SERPS depends on your income over a maximum of 20 years. But it does not use your take home or pre tax pay to work out the income part of the equation. Instead it counts how much you were paid above the National Insurance lower earnings limit up to a maximum of the difference between the lower and upper earnings limits. (These lower and upper earnings figures are an important part of the National Insurance system. If you earn below the lower earnings limit you do not pay National Insurance and, while SERPS was in operation, you did not pay National Insurance contributions on any earnings above the upper limit. For the last year of SERPS the lower limit was £72 a week and the upper limit was £575 a week.)Each year's income figure is uprated in line with inflation. A maximum of 20 years of these income figures is then used to work out your SERPS pension. The maximum pension you can receive from SERPS is 25 per cent of your average income (calculated the SERPS way - ie your wage less the lower earnings limit up to a maximum of the upper earnings limit). There's more about SERPS here
Recent changes to the additional State PensionUntil April 2002, the additional State Pension for employees was called the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS). The amount of SERPS pension you received was based on a combination of the amount of your National Insurance contributions, and how much you earned.In April 2002, SERPS was reformed and the additional State Pension is now known as the State Second Pension. It gives a more generous additional State Pension to low and moderate earners, and certain carers and people with a long-term illness or disability.By around 2030 or shortly afterwards the State Second Pension will become a simple, flat-rate weekly top-up to the basic State Pension.How the change-over to the State Second Pension affects SERPS pensionsAny SERPS entitlement you have is protected – so if you built up an entitlement to additional State Pension before April 2002 you will keep it, whether or not you've already reached State Pension age.Spouse or civil partner inheritance of the additional pensionState Second PensionA widow, widower or surviving civil partner can only inherit a maximum of 50 per cent of their spouse's or civil partner's State Second Pension.SERPSIf you contributed to SERPS the maximum percentage of your SERPS pension that your widow, widower or surviving civil partner could inherit is on a sliding scale depending on when you were born and the age at which you retired.The percentages range from 50 per cent for men born on or after 6 October 1945 or women born on or after 6 July 1950, up to 100 per cent for men born on or before 5 October 1937 or women born on or before 5 October 1942.
How the State Second Pension helps disabled people and carersIf you are a carer, on low earnings or have long-term disabilities you can now benefit from an improved additional State Pension.If you don't work or if you earn less than the annual National Insurance lower earnings limit (£4,524 in 2007-2008), you can still build up an entitlement if you:look after a child aged six or less, and you are the person who claims and gets Child Benefit take care of someone who is ill or disabled, and you qualify for Home Responsibilities Protection are entitled to Carer's Allowance (even where you don't get this because you get a benefit that pays more)
How to claim the additional State PensionYour entitlement to additional State Pension (whether from SERPS or from the State Second Pension) is calculated when you claim the basic State Pension.The Pension Service will normally send you the relevant forms and invite you to make a claim about four months before you reach State Pension age. For men this is 65 and 60 for women born on or before 5 April 1950. The State Pension age for women born on or after 6 April 1950 will increase from 60 to 65 between 2010 and 2020. It will increase for both men and women from age 65 to 68 between 2024 and 2046..Contracting out – effect on additional State PensionWhen you contract out you choose to pay a reduced amount of National Insurance contributions because you have joined an occupational pension scheme. As a result, you will not normally be entitled to the full State Second Pension because your additional pension will come from your employer's scheme. But you will normally be entitled to a reduced additional State Pension.If you have a stakeholder pension or a personal pension you can still contract out if you wish, but instead of you paying a reduced National Insurance contribution, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will pay an annual rebate of contributions direct into your personal pension. If you choose not to contract out you will not receive this rebate, but you will still build up entitlement to the State Second Pension.
Afraid of being accused of yet more mis-selling, the pensions industry is frantically mailing millions of pension investors in a bid to cover its back. The panic mailshots are trying to persuade the investors to review their decision to opt out of the state second pension (formerly known as Serps).When you look at the circumstances of one Telegraph reader, typical of millions who were advised to contract out, you can see why the industry is getting rattled.Serps (the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme) was introduced in 1978 as a top-up to the basic state pension. It was supposed to provide an income in retirement of around half the average wage.During the late 1980s, the conventional wisdom peddled by the life companies was that anyone under the ages of 45 to 50 would be better off opting out of Serps and having their National Insurance rebate paid into a personal pension. The view was that a personal pension would be able to provide better benefits.The reader, Marion Holmes, opted out of Serps in 1988 at the age of 44 and asked to have her NI rebates paid into a personal pension. In 1991 she became self-employed and was no longer eligible for Serps. But she continued to make contributions of £500 a year to the personal pension plan until 2002 - not a lot, but still another £5,500 to add to the NI rebates for the earlier years.She was recently notified of her state pension entitlement, due to be paid from the end of next month. This would have included an extra £78 a week for the years in which she was a member of Serps, but this figure had been reduced by nearly £20 a week to take account of the four years she was contracted out of Serps.At the same time, she was informed by her personal pension provider that her opt-out scheme was worth just over £9,000. This will provide a pension of just £400 a year, or roughly £8 a week - only 40 per cent of the Serps pension it was supposed to replace.Part of the reason the personal pension income was so low was that the "protected rights" portion had to be index-linked to match the Serps pension it was supposed to replace.The "protected rights" portion is the part that replaces the Serps income. Because the income from Serps is linked to the retail prices index, this part of the personal pension also has to be index-linked. And index-linked private pensions always start at a very low level, because there has to be enough left over in the pension pot to fund a rising pension for perhaps 20 or 30 years of retirement.She writes: "I have been told my opt-out pension scheme would need to have been worth £45,000 (the value of the Serps pension I gave up) in order to generate an index-linked income of £20 a week. Even after contributing more than £5,000 of my own money, it is nowhere near this figure. What have I done wrong?"Marion Holmes's opt-out scheme is unit-linked and the early NI rebates have been invested for 16 years. The stock market collapse of 1987 had already happened by the time she started investing in the personal pension so, until 2000, the investment climate had been relatively benevolent.But, even if the recent collapse in share prices had not happened, and her pension fund was still worth just over £14,000, as it had been in 2000, this is still less than one third of the £45,000 she would need to replace the Serps pension.The advice to those considering opting out of Serps is: don't. This is particularly true for those on average earnings or below, because S2P, the state second pension which replaced Serps, is particularly generous to lower earners.And, for those who have already opted out, it is almost certainly better to opt back in. To provide the index-linked £58 a week that Marion will receive from Serps, she would have needed a personal pension fund worth £67,000 at retirement. To achieve this with a personal pension she would have had to save roughly £100 a month for 25 years at today's prices.She earned her Serps pension with only 10 years' contributions of just over five per cent of earnings - or £112 a month at today's prices. In spite of having lost out for the years she opted out of Serps, the 10 years in which she stayed in has proved to be a very good investment.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

There are so many compensation claims these days. Hopefully everything will be taken care of.