Call You and Yours: Curbing pensioner benefits

Movedalot

According to the speaker the average income of a pensioner from all sources is £23,000 per year/
It might have included things like equity release.

Frank

Oh, yeah......

Movedalot

I thought the majority of pensioners live on similar estates to mine.

Frank

Have you ever visited ? It is a really nice place . Well I think so .

Hunter you didn't answer my question. What happens on your estate in SC is hardly representative of the UK.

I think Frinton on Sea has a lot of pensioners similar to the estate I live on.

Frank

Pardon , Little Frinton , NOT Frinton on Sea .

Just a matter of curiousity Hunterf why would a place in Birmingham , have the name Frinton on sea which is in Essex ?
I am puzzled .

Movedalot

I live on a large estate and most of the people are retired and the houses are 4 bedroom detached with double garages.
The estate is nicknamed Little Frinton by some of the locals.
I think most of the people around here would be getting more than £23k.

Frank

annodomini

I meant no benefits which are not payable to all pensioners.

Frank

What a dog in the manger attitude, Frank. You mean that you would restrict pensioners to £146per week and give no winter fuel allowance, no attendance allowance, no bus passes, no free TV licence for the over 75s? Bring back the almshouses. As far as I understand it, the state pension will be paid irrespective of one's occupational or other private pension. And you are right, jane. The reason for the flat rate pension is to make minimum guarantee credit unnecessary.

Hunter I can't believe the average pensioner gets £23k, if must be less than that. Are you sure? Could it have been pensioner households? Or was it pensioners in a particular sector?

jane

I think the £146 is ok as long as no other benefits are payable.
If this happens it means people with occupational pensions are not being penalised.
The £146 should be payable even if you have occupational pensions of £100,000 per year.

Frank

Greatnan

These wealthy pensioners have paid higher taxes and are therefore entitled to the benefits.
Some pensioners pay more in tax than what they get in state pension.

Frank

Matson Yes, in 2010-11 the 'welfare' bill was £202 billion.
That lumped pensions and benefits together.

eloethan I think that from 2016 the basic state pension is to be increased to £146 pw for new pensioners, presumably to reduce eligibility for things like pension credit.

I think there probably are quite a lot of wealthy pensioners, both in terms of income and capital, as they may have huge equity tied up in their houses,and I know couples where both have good occupational pensions. I am not grudging them, after all, they worked and contributed, but they don't need any extra benefits. However, as had been remarked, means testing is expensive.

FRANK.. re my last post, this included my occupational pension, I agree with ELEGRAN someone needs their backside kicking, is it any wonder younger people now assume we are the well off generation?

I agree with you Elegran.
I don't see why pensioners with private pensions should be penalised to give extra money to people with just state pensions.

Frank

£124 per week is £6.448 a year, right enough. Anything else is a private or occupational pension that has been paid for by the individual or earned from years of work. That "expert" should have his rear kicked.

matson

There are a lot of people with occupational pensions which are far in excess of the state pension so it would not surprise me if the 23k figure is about right.

Frank

Sel

Do you mean 50k after tax?.

I think if my sister, who does not drive, was not able to get out most days to the local shopping precinct on the little local bus, her mental and physical health would suffer which would cost the NHS more in the long run. A taxi is £3 each way and she cannot walk for more than about a hundred yards.
She has not worked since she was 19 and had the first of her four sons, but her late husband paid contributions for about 40 years and all her sons are higher rate tax payers. Oddly enough, because of her disabilities, and the fact that she is in a housing association house, her net income is not far short of mine and I have worked in the UK for some 30 years. However, I don't grudge her anything because I would not like her health problems.

FRANK. I don't know who " they" are , but my average pension is well under half that amount and counting my works pension! "they" need a reality check! x

£12Kpa would be £230 per week which slightly more than a couple would receive on guarantee credit. Someone has got their proverbials in a twist.

Hunterf my £50k included a London weighting