General Information

The LGPS requires LPFA to:

• pay interest on lump sum benefits that are paid more than one month after they should have been paid.

• pay interest on pensions that are paid more than a year after they should have been paid.

• pay interest on refunds of contributions that are paid more than a year after the date you left the LGPS.

• compare any benefits accrued up to 31 March 1998 to those that would have been payable under the 1995 Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations and increase them if this is better, provided you have been a member of the LGPS continuously since before 1st April 1998.

• issue annual benefit statements to Scheme members (other than to pensioners).

• have a statement setting out their policy on communicating with scheme members, members’ representatives, prospective members and employers.

The LGPS allows LPFA to:

• commute small pensions into single lump sum payments.

The LGPS allows your employer to:

• increase your total membership at any time you are contributing to the LGPS. Your employer’s policy in relation to this discretion must be included in their Policy Statement.

• reduce pension benefits if a LGPS member ceases to be employed as a result of a criminal, negligent or fraudulent act, or omission.

• forfeit a LGPS member’s pension rights if the Secretary of State for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister agrees and the member has been convicted of a serious offence connected with their employment.

The LGPS does not allow you to:
• assign your benefits. Your LGPS benefits are strictly personal and cannot be assigned to anyone else or used as security for a loan.

Scheme Administration

Who runs the LGPS?

The LGPS is run by administering authorities, for example County Councils, in accordance with regulations approved by Parliament. Each administers their own Fund, into which all contributions are paid. Every three years, independent actuaries carry out a valuation of each Fund and set the rate at which the participating employers must contribute to fully fund the payment of Scheme benefits for that Fund's membership.

How is the Scheme amended?

The Scheme regulations are made under the Superannuation Act 1972. Changes to the rules are discussed at national level by employee and employer representatives but can only be amended with the approval of Parliament. Your administering authority must keep you informed of any changes that are made.

Are the Scheme benefits protected?

As the Scheme is set up by statute, payment of the Scheme benefits is guaranteed by law.

What other legislation applies to the Scheme?

The Scheme is treated as 'exempt approved' under Chapter 1, Part XIV of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988. This means, for example, that you receive tax relief on your contributions. It complies with the relevant provisions of the Pension Schemes Act 1993, the Pensions Act 1995 and the Pensions Act 2004.

How can I check the accuracy of my pension records?

To maintain the security of any information about you, your administering authority is registered under the current Data Protection Acts. You can check that your computerised personal record is accurate, although we may charge a small fee.

What other information am I entitled to?

You are entitled to obtain a copy of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 1997 (Statutory Instrument Number 1997 No.1612) and subsequent amendments. The Regulations are available from The Stationery Office. A current version, including all amendments, is available on the Employers' Organisation for Local Government website at http://www.lg-mployers.gov.uk/pensions/index.html A copy of the Regulations may be inspected at the offices of your administering authority. In addition, you are entitled to view, and take copies of, your administering authority’s Annual Report and Accounts.

Help with Pension Problems

Who can help me if I have a query or complaint?

If you are in any doubt about your benefit entitlements, or have a problem or question about your LGPS membership or benefits, please contact the Pension Section of your administering authority. They will seek to clarify or put right any misunderstandings or inaccuracies as quickly and efficiently as possible.

If you are still dissatisfied with any decision made in relation to the Scheme you have the right to have your complaint independently reviewed under the Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure and, as the Scheme is well regulated, there are also a number of other regulatory bodies that may be able to assist you. The various procedures and bodies are detailed below.

• Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure

In the first instance you should write to the person nominated by the body who made the decision about which you wish to appeal. You must do this within six months of the date of the notification of the decision about which you are complaining. The nominated person will consider your complaint and notify you of his / her decision. If you are dissatisfied with that person’s decision, you may, within six months of the date of the decision, apply to your administering authority to have it reconsidered.

A leaflet explaining the Internal Disputes Resolution Procedure in detail is available on request from your administering authority’s Pension Section. To avoid any unnecessary effort on your behalf we would welcome the opportunity to attempt to resolve with you the matter with which you are dissatisfied before you resort to a formal complaint.

• The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS)

TPAS is available at any time to assist members and beneficiaries of the Scheme in connection with any pensions query they may have or any difficulty which they cannot resolve with their scheme administrators. TPAS can be contacted at: 11 Belgrave Road, London, SW1V 1RB: Telephone 0845 601 2923

• Pensions Ombudsman

In cases where a complaint or dispute cannot be resolved after the intervention of OPAS, an application can be made, within three years of the event, to the Pensions Ombudsman for an adjudication. The Ombudsman can investigate and determine any complaint or dispute involving maladministration of the Scheme or matters of fact or law and his or her decision is final and binding. Matters where legal proceedings have already started cannot be investigated. The Pensions Ombudsman can be contacted at: 11 Belgrave Road, London, SW1V 1RB: Telephone 0207 834 9144

• The Pensions Regulator

From April 2005, the Pensions Regulator replaces the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority (OPRA) as the regulator of work-based pension schemes. The Pensions Regulator has powers to protect members of work-based pension schemes and a wide range of powers to help put matters right, where needed. In extreme cases, the regulator is able to fine trustees or employers, and remove trustees from a scheme. You can contact the Pensions Regulator at: Napier House, Trafalgar Place, Brighton, BN1 4DW: Telephone 0870 6063636

How can I trace my pension rights?

The Pension Tracing Service holds details of pension schemes, including the LGPS, together with relevant contact addresses. It provides a tracing service for ex-members of schemes with pension entitlements (and their dependants), who have lost touch with previous employers. All occupational and personal pension schemes have to register if the pension scheme has current members contributing into their scheme or people expecting benefits from the scheme. If you need to use this tracing service please write to: The Pension Tracing Service, The Pension Service, Tyneview Park, Whitley Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1BA: Telephone 0845 6002 537

Also, don’t forget to keep your pension providers up to date with any change in your home address.

What customer service initiatives are in place?

`A Charter for Our Customers' is issued automatically to all new members of the LPFA Fund on joining the Scheme. It is also available by contacting us as detailed on the Contact Us section of this site. The Charter contains details of the service and standards you will receive from the LPFA as a member of the LGPS. `A Charter for our Pensioners' detailing the service and standards you will receive as a pensioner of the LPFA Fund is issued on retirement.

Each year all members of the Fund are sent an invitation to apply for a ticket for our Fund Members Forum. The Forum provides an opportunity for Fund members to meet the LPFA Board and staff and to ask them questions `face to face' and for topical information about the administration of the Fund, LPFA services, pensions and other subjects of interest to our Fund members to be provided. A summary of the day is issued to all Fund members each year.

The LPFA maintains an Internet Website providing a wide range of information about the organisation, the services provided and the Local Government Pension Scheme. The Website address is www.lpfa.org.uk and it contains five sites to visit which are:

• Pensioner Information including the latest newsletter, a list of pension paydays, the Pensioners' Charter and a noticeboard

• Member Information aimed at contributing members of the Scheme and including the Customers' Charter, information on additional voluntary contributions and frequently asked questions

• Corporate Information including the latest Annual Report and Accounts, details of the Board Members and a full contacts listing

• Specialist Services which details services available to external organisations

• Employer Information which details information aimed at employers within the LPFA Fund and those that may wish to join it.