I am a pensioner

Various tribes always seem to have Elders, and treat them with respect.

I like the sound of that!

Opportunist?

Nothing personal, Butty!

Never!

Odorous?

I would like to become old enough to be considered Wise One - a way to go yet!

'orrible obtuse objective opulent?

Old???

WOW wise old woman?

Yes, jeni like that one. I tend towards oh Wise One!

How about VEP very experienced people?

Not sure about that one!

I wonder if the title "Grand" might be nice for those of us to whom it would seem to apply?. It's unisex and has a positive connotation, and couldn't really offend anyone. Overheard at the post office, "Oh look, there's an attractive Grand drawing her/his pension."

Your telling me theyre expensive!

Yes, I've heard that one, but I doubt it is true. Firstly many people over 80, particularly if they stay fit in mind and body, lead lives that are just as busy and active as much younger people. Secondly even if you stay fit you may well find that you havent the energy and flexibility you had and would like to get others to do your cleaning, grass cutting etc. If in later life you do suffer some disability you may need even more help and help of any kind is expensive and Social Services won't support you unless the lack of care threatens your life.

I suspect that many of those over 80 need larger incomes than those under that age to pay for any help and assistance they need

All the programmes I have heard suggest not taking the lump sum from the state pension but taking it from a private pension as that is always tax free. Quite possibly a company pension will rise each year but for those who have to buy an anuity with their fund it may not. It rather depends how you choose your annuity but whatever you do that annuity will be taxed but the lump sum won't be.

It has been suggested to me that it is better to go for a level annuity as you are more likely to need the money in the first few years after retirement when you ae fit and active rather than when you are older and can't do so much.

The series of programs presently being put on by the BBC about how to manage in old age is aimed at people over 65!

Going back to what to call us mature types - it really grieved me when in work developing Government policies that anyone over 50 years was (a) classed as an older person (the cheek!) and (b) was lumped in with everybody else from age 50 upwards when considering their needs. You'd never consider lumping a child of five, or a teenager, in with 40 year old adults when developing policies - why should it be different for us? I'm fit and active, my mother is not - we need different things! Hummph!

But generally people do not invest the lump sum, they use it to pay for holidays or house improvements etc.

Having been made 'voluntarily' redundant into early retirement in my early 50s and coming from a long-lived family, my father lived hale and fit until he was 92, maximising my income by not taking a lump sum, at a time when the economy was considerably more stable, seemed then and continues to seem the best policy

Why not take the lump sum and buy some thing useful with it krugerrands or similar as the pound is not going to buy diddly squat in five years time.And Faust said Timor mortis conturbat me when he knew his time was up. Quoted often in our house for some reason

Hate it, sounds like a description of someone with dementia.

There was an article in one of the Sunday papers (cant think which) saying that taking a lump sum, whether from state or occupational pension, is a mugs game unless you have a short life expectancy, as increases in pensions are done on a % basis and that means those that dont take a lump sum are getting a bigger pension rise in value each year so the gap between their pension and that of those who take the lump sum gets larger and larger and can end up in being tens of £s larger.

It's become a cliché now.

petallus not very fond of it either!

hi my first comment! although i,m 60 i,m still not a pensioner yet! have to w.ait till january when i will be 61 and a half! they keep moving the goalpost