Pensioners Left in Limbo Over £45,000 Payments
Civil service pension claimants are facing waits of up to a year for their pension payments, with one retiree describing the ordeal as leaving thousands of people "penniless." The delays have been blamed on Capita, which took over administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme in December 2025.
Writing to expert Ruth Emery at The Telegraph, a pensioner who served for more than 30 years said they expected to receive their lump sum on their 60th birthday—October 14, 2025—and their first monthly payment a month later. Instead, they have received nothing. Their pension is worth £45,000.
Capita Fails to Respond Despite Promises
The pensioner said Capita has not replied to any of their emails despite a published 10-day response time. They described long phone queues: "My last call required me to queue for four and a half hours to speak to someone for three minutes. Earlier calls had queue times of 3.5 hours and cost me £28." They added, "Capita had over a year to prepare for this contract and they are leaving thousands of retirees penniless. I am at my wits’ end."
The retiree has not even been formally told how much their pension will be, despite having worked for the civil service for three decades.
Capita Inherited Massive Backlog
Capita acknowledged the problems, stating: "We regret that some members are still experiencing issues, and we apologise for the frustration experienced. While significant progress has been made, we continue to focus on improvements to the scheme. This remains Capita’s number one priority. We are working closely with the Cabinet Office on all aspects of the scheme."
The company explained that when it took over the administration of the Civil Service Pensions Scheme on December 1, 2025, it inherited a significant volume of outstanding work from the previous provider. This included a backlog of 86,000 work-in-progress cases and more than 15,000 unread emails. These issues have affected some members’ ability to access services and caused delays to pension quotes and payments for newly retired members.
Impact on Retirees
Thousands of civil service pensioners are affected, with many left without any income from their pensions for months. The delays have caused financial hardship, as retirees who planned their finances around their expected pension payments are forced to rely on savings or other sources. The Cabinet Office is working with Capita to address the backlog, but no timeline has been given for when all cases will be resolved.
