While on the subject of pensions, another correspondent asks, “Can someone please clarify the amount of the basic state pension for me, as I am getting nearer my retirement date and it is very important to me.”

This question isn’t as simple to answer as you might imagine.

That’s because, contrary to what most people think, a full basic state pension – which is currently £87.30 a week – is not an automatic right.

To qualify for a minimum pension – worth just a quarter of the basic weekly amount – men must pay full-rate National Insurance contributions for 11 tax years and women for 10.

To get the full basic pension men need 44 years and women 39 – though this will fall to 30 years for both sexes from 2010.

If your contribution record is patchy, depending on when you’re due to retire, it may be worth making back payments to increase your entitlement.

To check your individual situation, get a forecast of your state pension entitlement.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 17th, 2007 at 1:42 pm and is filed under UK Personal Finance, Pensions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.