PENSION AGE HELL

On November 6, the state pension age for women will hit 65. Getting to the point when women can retire at the same age as men has been a long and painful process. Many had no idea of the wait in store until it was too late to plan for it.

However, the pain is far from over. From December 6 this year, the state pension age will rise again – this time for both men and women - until it hits 66 in October 2020.

It means millions of people will have to wait even longer for their pensions, and there’s every chance this will come as a horrible shock.

Sarah Coles, personal finance analyst at investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, says: “Part of the problem is that the rise to 66 has often been described as ‘by 2020’, so it was easy to assume if you turned 65 before then, you wouldn’t be hit.

“Unfortunately, it will begin to kick in this December.

“Those who are 65 in December 2019 may be horrified to learn they’ll won’t get their pension until they’re 66.”

The timeline for the move to 66 changed. In 2007 it was scheduled to take place between 2024 and 2026. It was speeded up in 2011 – if you missed the change, you might still be counting down to the wrong date.

Sarah adds: “The way this change is being brought in is likely to cause unhappiness – because it means someone younger than you could get their pension at an earlier age.

That’s because the system groups together everyone born between the 6th of one month and the 5th of the following, and they all start their state pension on the same day.”

So, someone born on December 6, 1953 is grouped with someone born on January 5, 1954, getting their pension on March 6, 2019. The older person has to wait until they are 65 and three months to retire – while the younger one gets to retire at 65 and two months.

Even worse news is that more rises are on the cards.

At the moment the state pension age is scheduled to rise to 67 between 2026 and 2028, and then go up again to 68 between 2037 and 2039. Anyone born on or after April 5, 1978 will have to wait until at least the age of 68 for their state pension.