Pension increases

Main scheme pension

As your pension is partly protected against inflation, we increase your pension on 1st April each year. If you retire after 1st April we will increase your pension based on when you retire. We will send you a letter each year, usually in April, with full details of the increase to your pension.

The letter will break down your yearly pension into separate parts. Each part may be treated differently depending how your total pension is made up. Some parts will be increased by the scheme and other parts by the Department for Work and Pensions.

Pension increases broadly reflect the retail prices index in the preceding December. However, we are unable to work out the final increase until Parliament agrees the orders in the March immediately before the April increase. These increases form part of your rights and are not discretionary.

In the past eight years, the increases made to pensions have been broadly as follows:

2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
2.9	2.8	3.5	2.2	4.4	4.0	0.9	2.4

 

DMGT AVC Plan pension (with profits)

If you are receiving a pension from the DMGT AVC Plan, then your increase to this pension is paid by way of an annual bonus. The trustees, following advice received by the actuary, decide whether or not a bonus can be paid. This depends on the financial health of the plan.

In recent years the trustees have been advised by the actuary that the financial health of the plan is such that no annual bonuses can be paid.