How do I claim a pension

Employees who hold a private pension with their employer can draw this pension when they choose to retire. Different organisations and pension companies operate in different ways, due to this people are advised to gather specific advise from their pension provider. In the majority of cases the pension can be claimed when somebody chooses to retire, regardless of their age. Although some policies will have a certain age criteria in it and this will mean the pension will not be paid out until the age has been reached. In most cases the pension will provide the recipient with two options. People will have the choice to accept a large lump sum and a smaller pension or a larger pension and smaller lump sum. Employers in the majority of cases will arrange for the payment of the pension with the pension provider. Before the pension is paid some employees may be required to provide some extra information or financial details if they have received over sums of money.
The state pension can be claimed by contacting the local authority within your area. The amount of state pension which each person receives depends how many qualifying years of National Insurance have been built up for the specific person. National Insurance builds up by paying contributions from a wage or the National Insurance may be credited to some people by the Government.
If you have been in a position where paying National Insurance was not possible, such as being ill or unemployed, in the majority of cases the government will make the contributions for you by providing credits. Credits area also awarded to people who receive Child Benefit or caring for someone who is sick or disabled.
In order to claim a state pension the person wishing to claim will need to provide numerous different documents. The National Insurance number of the claimant will need to be provided, along with proof of the current address and postcode plus proof of the last two address at which the claimant has lived. The tax reference number of the person will also need to be provided, this can be found on a P45 or P60 or any letter concerning tax from HM Revenue and Customs. If the claimant is married or in a civil partnership or have been previously, the details of the partner will required, this includes the National Insurance number and also the date of marriage or civil partnership.