Are You Entitled To The Widow Pension?

With the trend of changing and evolving pensions growing from year to year it is becoming increasingly important to know what pension benefit you will be entitled to and to examine every circumstance. Below we take a look at the Widow Pension.

It goes without saying that bereavement is a difficult time when trying to make sense of even the small things can feel like hard work. Dealing with the issues arising from your late spouse's pension at times can seem near on impossible. This is why it is important that you understand the widow policy attached to your partner's private and state pension when they take out the initial policy. Failure to do so may leave you vulnerable and unable to cope should the worse happen.

Widow Pension

The Widow Pension was introduced in 2001 as a new system for bereavement benefits for men and women. The Widow Pension is based on the National Insurance contributions of your late spouse and is paid in regular payments for 52 weeks from the date of bereavement. The rate will depend on the national contributions made by the late spouse and your age when they died.

Eligibility

In order to qualify for a Widow Pension you will need to be over the age of 45 when your spouse died, not have any dependent children and be under the age of 65. If you are divorced from your wife or husband you will not be entitled to any Widow Pension. You will equally not qualify for eligibility should you re-marry or live with a partner as if you were married. It is worth noting that you may still be eligible for Widow Pension even if your late spouse did not pay national insurance contributions, in the circumstance that they died as the result of a work based injury. It is certainly worth looking into this if you find yourself in this situation.

Important Points

Your Widow Pension will not be affected by whether or not you work.

If you were over the state pension age when your spouse died you may be entitled to a different type of pension, known as an Extra Retirement Pension which is also based on your late spouse's national insurance contributions.

You may also be entitled to an additional state pension or SERPS if your late spouse paid into this scheme, even if you are claiming Widow Pension.

If you are unsure of any of the pension benefits you are entitled to then you would be well advised to contact a pensions adviser.