Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mrs T complaint is upheld but, because the Council has now agreed to reconsider her application for an ill health pension, the directions I have made are only in respect of compensation for the significant non-financial injustice she has suffered, the time frames to which the Council should act and the review of her benefits, should she be awarded Tier 3 benefits.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mrs N complaint is upheld and to put matters right Merseyside should pay Mrs N the difference between the pension she is receiving and the pension she was told she would receive.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.

Complaint summary

Mrs N is unhappy because Merseyside provided her with an inaccurate benefits statement, which she relied on before retiring early. In particular, Merseyside led her to believe that her pension benefits would be higher than they were.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mr S’ complaint is upheld and to put matters right Chartwell shall provide Mr S with the information he requested.  Chartwell shall also pay Mr S £2,000 in recognition of the significant distress and inconvenience he has experienced.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.

Complaint summary

Mr S’ complaint is about Chartwell’s failure to properly administer the Scheme and its refusal to provide information when requested.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mr S’ complaint is upheld and to put matters right BASF should make the discretionary decision afresh, without taking into account Mr S’ pre-employment medical or the questionnaire, and pay Mr S £500 for the significant distress and inconvenience he has suffered.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mr N’s complaint is upheld and to put matters right Wesleyan Assurance Society should provide confirmation of the final fund values of the Plans and pay Mr N £1,000 for the significant distress and inconvenience he has suffered.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Ms S’ complaint is upheld and to put matters right LBWF should ask Capita, or the new administrators of the Scheme, to recalculate, and then backdate Ms S’ pension, taking into account her higher salary from 2008 before she was redeployed into a lower grade.

In addition, LBWF should provide Ms S with an explanation as to why the original quotation for her original lump sum was much higher than the actual amount.

Ombudsman’s Decision

Complaint summary

Mr O has complained that the reason given for leaving his employment has been recorded incorrectly and as result Mr O has not received an unreduced pension.

Summary of the Ombudsman’s decision and reasons

The complaint should be upheld against Capita because based on the evidence available, Mr O left employment by mutual consent on grounds of business efficiency and therefore falls within the scope of Regulation 30(7) of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 2013.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Ms S’ complaint is upheld and to put matters right the Trustee and DTL should provide a full response to the questions raised by Ms S, and pay her £1,000 each to reflect the significant distress and inconvenience caused to her by their maladministration. If Ms S wishes to exercise her statutory right to a transfer value from the Scheme to a named pension arrangement that is willing to accept it, the Trustee and DTL should pay a transfer value to that arrangement.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Complaint Summary

Mr D is complaining that Carillion failed to action his requests to allow the purchase of Added Pension in the PSCPS. As a result, there was a delay in the payment of his benefits.

Summary of the Ombudsman’s Determination and reasons

The complaint should be upheld against Carillion because it failed to act on Mr D’s instructions and process his pension benefits within a timely manner.

My reasons for reaching this view are explained in more detail below.

Ombudsman’s Determination

Outcome

Mrs K’s complaint is upheld and to put matters right the Council should consider Mrs K’s ill-health pension application again.

The Council shall also pay Mrs K £500 in recognition of the distress and inconvenience caused by not following the procedure correctly and the consequential delay.

My reasons for reaching this decision are explained in more detail below.