My deceased father's pension

[Red4]

Hiya
I found out my father died 4 years ago in London, I'm from Cheshire. He was still married to my mum but had been separated for about 20 years. He was living with a partner and i've found out from family that she is claiming a widow's pension from my dad. I'm not sure really what pension she is claiming. He did work as a securtiy guard for the BBC.
Is my mum entitled to a widow's pension still being married to my father, and should we have been informed of his death??
I have her name from my dad's death certificate and address where they lived.
Can you help??


Thanks.

[Ethel]

Well the 'other woman' is definitely not getting a 'widow's pension' or bereavement benefit from the state as she was not married to him.

Is your mother living with another man? If so, she is not entitled to claim. Does your mother fit the criteria here?

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/senew/SE76171.h tm


If it is his private works' pension, he may have been entitled to name his partner as beneficiary, and not his wife.

Or she may be getting nothing, and your information is wrong.

[Red4]

No my mum's never had another partner since my dad left. She lives alone and is on disability as she's had a stroke.
She is with another partner now and i know for sure she is claiming widow's pension.

[Ethel]

I must be a private pension then, where your dad has named her as beneficiary.

There is nothing can be done about it - he would have been entitled to do that.

There is no state widow's pension - it stopped in 2001. After that was bereavement benefit - a one off payment of �2000, but you had to be married to claim it.

[Red4]

How does my mum go about claiming this as she was still married to him and is it too late to claim?? He died 4 years ago.

[CheekyChops]

I don't see why your mum should be able to claim anything - they had been seperated for 20 for goodness sake! She can hardly claim bereavment benefit - how can anyone claim they were bereaved if she didn't know he had died until 4 years after...

[Red4]

Yeah cheers for that. It was her fault i didnt see him before he died as she was a jealous and vindictive person. She treated him horrible apparently didnt look after him when he was ill with cancer, she wasn't bareaved at all!!!!