Retirement benefits

[hardy49]

In June my husband had a quadruple heart bypass. He is 58 years old and feels that he would like to retire if possible.He is paying into a company pension which he could start at 60 years of age but,obviously,that would not be enough for us to survive on. I am receiving a pension of �31 per week.
Could somebody please point us towards where we can apply for any benefits that we may be entitled to as we have simply no idea where to start,not having done anything like this before.

[paddywak]

Pop into your Citizens Advice. I was left in a similar position some 10yrs ago after a stroke and they were really good , not only finding out and explaining what I could claim for, they even had an extremely helpfull young lady come out and fill all the forms for me, and believe me it can cost to if you make a mistke with the amount of forms you might end up

[factor-fiction]

I think he'll be able to take his pension at age 58 but it may not be worth it as any pension may affect his entitlement to benefits.

[Whoever]

There's a website called EntitledTo.com or something similar (try Googling it) which will give you some idea of the benefits to which you could be entitled to, depending on your circumstances. Your husband should check with his pension fund trustees to see if there is any chance of him being able to get an early medical retirement under the rules of his pension scheme which might mean getting a better financial deal. Perhaps it would be a good idea, if you haven't done it already, to sit down and make a detailed list of your current domestic expenditure, bearing in mind that that certain items will reduce in cost once he has retired, i.e. work commuting costs, which may be distorting your current budget. There is also an excellent website MoneySavingExpert.com which has a Forum section with lots of threads on different topics for for money saving ideas, and advice and hints on how to save money and make the most of your savings.

[hardy49]

Thank you all for your help

[AS1994]

Hi there, I am a Specialist Decision Maker for Pension Credit and associated benefits, In addition to the above. It is worth checking if he now has entitlement to disability living allowance, you can call the Disability Benefits Unit on 08457 123456, also it is worth checking to see if you may have entitlement to Pension Credit, the number you need there is 0800 99 1234. I recommend applying for disability benefit first as it can significantly increase your pension credit award.
good luck

Steve