‘Ridiculous’ rules for pensions under fire

A married Christchurch woman says it is ‘‘ridiculous’’ that she is paid less New Zealand Superannuation than someone who is single and living with another adult.

A married person gets a pension of $817.32 a fortnight, before tax, compared with the $990.20 received by a person sharing with someone who is not their spouse or partner.

‘‘I have a friend who isn’t in a relationship, but she’s sharing a house, and they share all the expenses, and she’s going to end up getting $172.88 more than me a fortnight, which is just plain wrong,’’ said Daphne, who did not want her last name used for privacy reasons.

The combined fortnightly payment for a couple is $1634.64.

The Ministry of Social Development said people in a relationship were more likely to share a wider range of costs and resources than a single person living with another adult.

Daphne said marital status should not come into the equation.

‘‘Everyone keeps saying, ‘Be financially independent as a woman’. Then you become financially independent and, lo and behold, you’re a couple again.’’

She said the rules did not reflect modern society, in which there were many different sorts of households sharing costs. ‘‘It’s just ridiculous.’’ Daphne said she was being penalised on reaching 65 for choosing to be in a marital relationship.

Susan St John, director of the University of Auckland’s Retirement Policy and Research Centre, said the policy was based on outmoded ideas about relationships.

‘‘Sometimes people in relationships aren’t even living in the same house. It just seems that we need to update our ideas.’’

The recent Cost of Living payment was made to individuals regardless of their relationship status, but the Winter Energy Payment was another instance of people receiving less if they were in a relationship, St John said.

Ministry of Social Development client service delivery director Graham Allpress said couples were more likely than single individuals to share resources such as a house, food, a car, insurance, a bedroom, savings, outings and furniture.

‘‘We need to update our ideas.’’

Susan St John

University of Auckland’s Retirement Policy and Research Centre director