In the event of divorce, nullity, judicial separation or dissolution of civil partnership, a court may order a pension scheme to pay all or part of a member’s entitlement to pension to his/her former spouse or civil partner. This could be in accordance with an “earmarking” order or a “pension sharing” order.
An earmarking order could apply to all or part of your retirement pension, potential lump sum, or possibly your death grant. If you have already retired, the order may require immediate payment of pension to your former spouse or civil partner. If you are an active or deferred member the order would not have effect until the benefits become payable.
A pension sharing order would have immediate effect. The court would instruct that a percentage of the value of your benefits should be deducted to provide “pension credit rights” for your former spouse or civil partner. The pension credit rights would remain in the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme until he/she is eligible to draw them (at age 60). The pension credit can be commuted to provide a lump sum, or would be paid as a death grant if the former spouse or civil partner (known as a “pension credit member”) dies before age.
It cannot be transferred to another pension arrangement. The court will normally expect the parties to provide information about the current and prospective value of pension rights together with the rules of the pension scheme(s) in which those rights are held. Your pensions administrator would provide this information for you or can give you further general information on the impact divorce/dissolution may have on pension rights.
Death benefits
When a Firefighters Pension Scheme (FPS) member dies (whether before or after retirement), if he/she had completed at least 2 years’ pensionable service a pension will be paid to a surviving spouse.
Provided husband and wife were not living separately the widow(er)’s pension would be:
• in the case of a serving scheme member – half of the total lower and higher tier ill-health pensions to which the firefighter would have been entitled if he/she had retired on health grounds on the date of death;
• in the case of a retired scheme member where the marriage took place before the member ceased to be a firefighter – half of the former firefighter’s pension as calculated before any reduction was made for commutation;
• in the case a firefighter, or former firefighter entitled to a deferred pension which was not in payment at the date of death – half of the deferred pension.
If the FPS member has worked part-time, account will be taken of this in the assessment of the widow(er)’s pension.
Your pensions administrator can give you personalised details if you require them.
Husband and wife living separately
If husband and wife were living separately at the date of death, the surviving spouse’s pension would be calculated as –
pensionable service after 5.4.1978 x 1/160 x average pensionable pay. However, if a greater pension (“the full pension”) would be payable if husband and wife were not living apart, the pension calculated by the formula shown above –
• must be increased to the level of any maintenance contributions the deceased was paying or liable to pay at the date of death for the support of spouse and/or child, but this must not be greater than the full pension
• may be increased to the full pension at the discretion of the fire and rescue authority.
Post-retirement marriage
If a former firefighter marries after leaving the fire and rescue service the surviving spouse’s pension would be assessed as the greater of the following – pensionable service after 5.4.1978 x 1/160 x firefighter’s average pensionable pay or 1/2 x service after 5.4.1978 x firefighter’s pension total pensionable service.