Your pension when you die
Your pension will stop at the end of the 4-week period in which you die. Any money that goes into your bank or building society after this period may transferred into your spouse’s pension.
As a member of the Scheme, your death benefits could include the following:
A lump sum death benefit
If you die within 5 years of retirement, a lump sum may be paid. You can find out how much this might equate to in your member booklet.
If you have been getting your pension for 5 years or more when you die, it’s unlikely that any lump sum would be paid.
The Trustee has ultimate responsibility for deciding who receives any lump sum death benefit. It is not considered as part of your estate and will not be covered by a will.
You can let the Trustee know who you would like your beneficiaries to be by making a nomination. This could help speed up the process of paying the lump sum, and avoid your loved ones having to pay tax.
Please remember that a will won’t cover your pension savings. The only way to leave direct instructions for what you want to happen to your pension money is to nominate.
You can make or update your nominations any time by logging in to your myESPS account. If you need help making a nomination online, please check the step-by-step guide to make and update nominations.
All nominations are confidential, and your beneficiaries will not be told that you have added or removed them.
For more information about nominations and who they can include, visit the nominations page.
Taking care of your loved ones
You can nominate:
- An individual or several people
- Charities or good causes
- Other organisations
Watch the short video to see why nominations are so important and how they could help you look after those you care about.
Regular pension payments for dependants
The Scheme rules set out who a dependants’ pension will be paid to. The rules say that a regular pension may be paid to the following if you die after retirement.
You can let the Trustee know if you have a change in circumstances that could affect the pensions outlined above by completing the relevant form below and returning it to the Scheme administrator, Railpen.
Spouse/Civil Partner
For most members this would be worth around half your pension at the date of your death. It may differ depending on the options you chose at retirement, such as opting for early retirement or an additional spouse’s pension. A spouse’s pension increases each April in the same way as your pension increase.
Dependant partner
If you are not married or in a civil partnership when you die, a pension may still be paid at the Trustees’ discretion to a person who was cohabiting with you, as your partner and was in a stable and long term relationship with you. Check your member booklet for further details.
Children
Each of your children under the age of 18 (or 21 if they’re in full time education) could get a child’s pension. The value of the pension will differ depending on whether or not a spouse/civil partner or dependant’s pension has also been paid. You can read more about how this is worked out and what happens if your child is disabled and unable to earn their own living in your member booklet.
Making your nominations online
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make, check and change your nominations online, in your myESPS account
Reporting a member’s death
When you die, it may be up to your family or friends to report your death to the Scheme administrator, Railpen, or to your employer if you're still working.
They need to do this as soon as possible, so we can stop your pension payments quickly. Otherwise, your beneficiaries may be asked to pay it back later.
Please make sure those close to you know where to find this information.
The easiest way to report a death is to download and complete the form on this page and to return it to the Scheme administrator, Railpen.
If you are using the government's Tell Us Once service, this will not work for the Magnox Scheme, because we are not a government department. That means you must contact us directly, even if you are using the Tell Us Once service for other organisations.
