The Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014

Survivor benefits: pensioner members

Death grants: pensioner members

51.—(1) If a pensioner member dies before attaining the age of 75, the Committee shall pay a death grant.

(2) The Committee may, at its absolute discretion, pay the death grant to or for the benefit of the member’s nominee, personal representatives or any person appearing to the Committee to have been a relative or dependent of the member.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), the death grant is ten times the annual amount the member would have been entitled to receive as retirement pension at the date of death if there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension), reduced by the amounts of any such commuted lump sum and any pension paid to the member.

(4) Where any pension paid to a member derived from a pension credit, the death grant is ten times the annual amount the member would have been entitled to receive as that pension at the date of death if there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension) reduced by the amounts of any such commuted lump sum and any pension paid to that member.

(5) If the Committee has not made payments under paragraph (1) equalling in aggregate the member’s death grant before the expiry of two years—

(a) beginning with the member’s death; or

(b) where the Committee did not know about the member’s death before the expiry of that period, beginning with the date on which the Committee could reasonably be expected to have become aware of the member’s death,

it shall pay an amount equal to the shortfall to the member’s personal representatives.

Survivor benefits: partners of pensioner members

52.—(1) If a pensioner member (other than a pensioner member where the pension the member was in receipt of was derived from a pension credit) dies leaving a surviving spouse, civil partner or nominated co-habiting partner, that person is entitled to a pension which shall come into payment on the day following the member’s death.

(2) The Committee shall close the pensioner member’s pension account and shall open a survivor member’s pension account from the day following the member’s death.

(3) The opening balance of the survivor member’s pension account is the amount of pension payable to the survivor calculated in accordance with paragraph (4).

(4) The amount of a pension payable under paragraph (3) is calculated by adding together the pension that the member would have been entitled to draw on the date of the member’s death if—

(a) the member’s earned pension had accrued at a rate of 1/160th of pensionable pay;

(b) the pension had not been subject to any actuarial adjustment relating either to the age at which it was drawn or following a Scheme Pays Election;

(c) there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension);

(d) the pension excluded any additional pension purchased under regulation 18 (additional pension contributions) and any additional pension awarded under regulation 32 (award of additional pension);

(e) the pension included 30.625% of any additional pension purchased under regulation 19(7)(b)(i) (additional voluntary contributions); and

(f) the amount of earned pension credited under regulation 113(1) (effect of acceptance of transfer value payment) had been multiplied by 49/160.

(5) If the member ceased to be an active member, became a pensioner member and died all within the same Scheme year, the balance in the survivor member’s pension account at the end of the Scheme year in which the survivor member’s pension account was opened is adjusted at the beginning of the following Scheme year by the revaluation adjustment applicable to the Scheme year in which the survivor member’s account was opened, in accordance with actuarial guidance issued by the Department.

(6) Where—

(a) paragraph (5) applies, the revalued balance calculated under paragraph (5) is the opening balance of the survivor member’s pension account for the following Scheme year;

(b) paragraph (5) does not apply, the balance under paragraph (3) is the opening balance of the survivor member’s pension account for the following Scheme year,

and, thereafter, the balance in the survivor member’s pension account is adjusted each year by the index rate adjustment from the date that an increase would apply if that balance were a pension in payment to which the 1971 Act applied.

(7) If there is more than one surviving spouse, they become jointly entitled in equal shares under paragraph (1).

Survivor benefits: children of pensioner members

53.—(1) If a pensioner member (other than a pensioner member where the pension the member was in receipt of was derived from a pension credit) dies leaving one or more eligible children, the eligible children are entitled to a children’s pension which shall come into payment on the day following the member’s death.

(2) The Committee shall open a survivor member’s pension account for the eligible child or children, in accordance with regulation 54 (survivor benefits: children of pensioner member where pension is payable to a partner of pensioner member) or regulation 55 (survivor benefits: children of pensioner member where no pension is payable to a partner of pensioner member) from the day following the deferred member’s death.

(3) The children’s pension shall be calculated in accordance with regulation 54 or regulation 55.

(4) If the member ceased to be an active member, became a pensioner member and died all within the same Scheme year, the balance in the survivor member’s pension account at the end of the Scheme year in which the survivor member’s pension account was opened is adjusted at the beginning of the following Scheme year by the revaluation adjustment applicable to the Scheme year in which the survivor member’s account was opened, in accordance with actuarial guidance issued by the Department.

(5) Where—

(a) paragraph (4) applies, the revalued balance calculated under paragraph (4) is the opening balance of the survivor member’s pension account for the following Scheme year;

(b) paragraph (4) does not apply, the balance under regulation 54(2) or 55(2), as the case may be, is the opening balance of the survivor member’s pension account for the following Scheme year,

and, thereafter, the balance in the survivor member’s pension account is adjusted each year by the index rate adjustment from the date that an increase would apply if that balance were a pension in payment to which the 1971 Act applied.

Survivor benefits: children of pensioner member where pension is payable to partner of pensioner member

54.—(1) If a pension is payable to a partner of a pensioner member under regulation 52(1) (survivor benefits: partners of pensioner members), the Committee shall open a survivor member’s pension account for the eligible child or children from the day following the member’s death.

(2) The opening balance of a survivor member’s pension account opened under paragraph (1), is the amount of pension payable to the eligible child or children calculated in accordance with paragraph (3) or (4) but if the pension payable under regulation 52(1) (survivor benefits: partners of pensioner members) ceases to be paid, the pension payable to the eligible child or children is recalculated in accordance with regulation 55(3) or 55(4) from the day following the date the pension under regulation 52(1) ceased to be paid.

(3) The amount of pension payable under paragraph (2) where there is only one such eligible child is calculated by adding together the pension that the member would have been entitled to draw on the date of the member’s death if—

(a) the member’s earned pension had accrued at a rate of 1/320th of pensionable pay;

(b) the amount of earned pension credited under regulation 113(1) (effect of acceptance of transfer value payment) had been multiplied by 49/320;

(c) the member’s pension had not been subject to any actuarial adjustment relating to the age at which it was drawn or following a Scheme pays election or any pension debit applied on account of a pension sharing order;

(d) there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension);

(e) the pension excluded any additional pension purchased under regulation 18 (additional pension contributions) and any additional pension awarded under regulation 32 (award of additional pension); and

(f) the pension included 15.3125% of any additional pension purchased under regulation 19(7)(b)(i) (additional voluntary contributions).

(4) The amount of pension payable under paragraph (2) where there is more than one such eligible child, is payable to those children in equal shares and is calculated by adding together the pension that the member would have been entitled to draw on the date of the member’s death if—

(a) the member’s earned pension had accrued at a rate of 1/160th of pensionable pay;

(b) the amount of earned pension credited under regulation 113(1) (effect of acceptance of transfer value payment) had been multiplied by 49/160;

(c) the member’s pension had not been subject to any actuarial adjustment relating to the age at which it was drawn or following a Scheme Pays Election or any pension debit applied on account of a pension sharing order;

(d) there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension);

(e) the pension excluded any additional pension purchased under regulation 18 (additional pension contributions) and any additional pension awarded under regulation 32 (award of additional pension); and

(f) the pension included 30.625% of any additional pension purchased under regulation 19(7)(b)(i) (additional voluntary contributions).

(5) At the point at which the number of eligible children is reduced to one, if a pension is still payable to a surviving partner under regulation 52(1) (survivor benefits: partners of pensioner members), the pension payable to that eligible child is recalculated in accordance with paragraph (3) as from the day following the date the other eligible child’s or children’s pension ceased to be paid.

Survivor benefits: children of pensioner member where no pension is payable to partner of pensioner member

55.—(1) If, on the day following the member’s death, no pension is payable to a partner of a pensioner member under regulation 52(1) (survivor benefits: partners of pensioner members), the Committee shall close the pensioner member’s pension account and shall open a survivor member’s pension account for the eligible child or children from the day following the member’s death.

(2) The opening balance of a survivor member’s pension account opened under paragraph (1) is the amount of pension payable to the eligible child or children, calculated in accordance with paragraph (3) or (4).

(3) The amount of pension payable under paragraph (2) where there is only one such eligible child is calculated by adding together the pension that the member would have been entitled to draw on the date of the member’s death if—

(a) the member’s earned pension had accrued at a rate of 1/240th of pensionable pay;

(b) the amount of earned pension credited under regulation 113(1) (effect of acceptance of transfer value payment) had been multiplied by 49/240;

(c) the member’s pension had not been subject to any actuarial adjustment relating to the age at which it was drawn or following a Scheme Pays Election or any pension debit applied on account of a pension sharing order;

(d) there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension);

(e) the pension excluded any additional pension purchased under regulation 18 (additional pension contributions) and any additional pension awarded under regulation 32 (award of additional pension); and

(f) the pension included 20.41667% of any additional pension purchased under regulation 19(7)(b)(i) (additional voluntary contributions).

(4) The amount of pension payable under paragraph (2) where there is more than one such eligible child, is payable to those children in equal shares and is calculated by adding together the pension that the member would have been entitled to draw if—

(a) the member’s earned pension had accrued at a rate of 1/120th of pensionable pay;

(b) the amount of earned pension credited under regulation 113(1) (effect of acceptance of transfer value payment) had been multiplied by 49/120;

(c) the member’s pension had not been subject to any actuarial adjustment relating to the age at which it was drawn or following a Scheme Pays Election or any pension debit applied on account of a pension sharing order;

(d) there had been no commutation under regulation 34 (election for lump sum instead of pension);

(e) the pension excluded any additional pension purchased under regulation 18 (additional pension contributions) and any additional pension awarded under regulation 32 (award of additional pension); and

(f) the pension included 40.8333% of any additional pension purchased under regulation 19(7)(b)(i) (additional voluntary contributions).

(5) At the point at which the number of eligible children is reduced to one, the pension payable to that child is recalculated in accordance with paragraph (3) as from the date the other child’s or children’s pension ceased to be paid.