Should I defer State (contrib) pension if born in December

elcato

Moderator
Messages
4,376
I'm due for the State contributory pension in December 2028. I will only have about 1500 stamps. Should I defer till Jan 2029 in order to get the 52 credits for 2028 ? Would there be a case for such a move in some circumstances ?
 
Any use?
 
It would only be useful if you needed the extra Prsi contributions to bring you into a higher averaging band, and also if getting into this higher band results in your calculated pension being higher using the combined average and total contributions calculation, rather than the total contributions only calculation.

It's explained better here in an example case I posted.

 
Last edited:
If you started your Prsi record at age 16 and claimed your COAP at age 66, you have an averaging divisor of 50.

With approximately 1500 stamps you should be into the average 30 band.

If it turns out that you end up with less than average 29.5 at age 66, it could be beneficial to defer until the start of the year after your 66th birthday.

Claim your pension to start at age 66. If it calculates out at average less than the 30 band, then reject it and reapply later.

If you end up in this situation make sure not to take any payments from the COAP. With this in mind choose payment at your local post office.