Nat Ins Contributions - Missing Years

Not personally, but I have had a couple of relatives in a similar position and have sat down with them to do the calculations.
You can make a fair guess about your longevity if you know your 'blood' family. Look at the data for average age at death in your area. Think about your mum, nans, & related aunts - did they die at around about that age? If they died younger could you relate it to something specific like smoking or industrial disease? Any other hereditary factors or something going on at the moment with you?

So not too difficult to work out if you've got almost 3 years left.

Broadly it is reckoned that you are better getting pension years (as they get uprated with inflation) that keeping savings.

Hope that helps!

I paid off about 2-3 years as I had not been working. At the time I felt it would be worth it. If you do decide to top up, keep all correspondence saying you have done this. I found their record- keeping wasn't the greatest. They made a mistake in mine, they did correct it after writing to them but it made me wary and Ive kept all correspondence with them. I won't get my State Pension until 67( unless they change it again).

With the SP changes in 2016 I was short too. My IFA said it was a good investment, so I used some of the equity from my house sale and paid for three years from 2016. No acknowledgement the payment had been received, and it took about three months for them to process the payment.

I will not get a full SP when I retire 2023 even though I have 41 years, I contracted out and my occ pension has been taken into account.
I am not paying the the extra years to bring it up to the number I need as I will be taxed on it.
Look at your personel
circumstances and see what is best for you. Everyone is different.

Do you have missing years because of being contracted out, or because you weren't working?

If it's the former, then you will have the best of both worlds by paying fir them - you'll get the contributions paid by your employer towards your occupational pension as well as those paid by the government if you pay voluntary contributions. That's how it was explained to me, anyway. I was contracted out and 'owed' seven years, even though I have well over the 35 years full contributions supposedly required for a full pension, so am paying voluntary contributions until my SPA kicks in.

If you have missing years because you didn't work and have no other pension, you may be better off not paying, because pension credit will bring you up to the level that those who did work will get. I assume that that will depend on how much you have by way of savings though - as usual, means testing will take account of anything you have put aside for your older age.

It might be better to contact the Pensions Advisory Service (free) and ask them to look into your particular case, as the state pension is far from straightforward.

I paid back six years, ten years on that has made a huge difference. I’d say do it.

If it’s less than 3 years for payback I’d be tempted to pay the missing years. Perhaps Citizens Advice or one of the organisations such as age concern might help with advice.

137 weeks is not that long. I think it would be well worth it. The only thing that might make me hesitate in your position, is if that would leave you with little or no savings to use for emergencies.

If you are going to be paying tax on your various Pensions then the £18.90 will be taxed as apart of your earnings.
ISA’s are tax free.
Might be best to leave the ISA alone?