Paul McGinness's Family Faces Pension Delays
Paul McGinness passed away from cancer at the age of 43, but as a civil servant, he had a pension that was expected to provide financial security for his family. Since his death in January, his wife Fiona has encountered significant bureaucratic challenges in accessing this pension.
Paul's pension, like those of thousands of other civil servants, has been delayed due to the outsourcing of pension scheme administration to Capita. This transition has caused widespread issues preventing beneficiaries from receiving lump-sum payments or ongoing pension income.
Fiona explained her experience to BBC Scotland News:
"I sent the paperwork, then they only sent me half the right forms. I had to send the death certificate, our marriage certificate, and even the kids' birth certificates.
Capita told me it would usually take 12 weeks to sort out but it'll be longer due to their current problems. Even 12 weeks is far too long."
Fiona resides in Cambuslang with their children, 15-year-old Rory and 11-year-old Alba. Paul succumbed to a fast and aggressive sarcoma cancer.
He had been employed by Social Security Scotland for four years since the agency's inception, dedicating his career to public service while ensuring his family would have pension security.
Fiona noted that Paul also had smaller pensions from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the NHS from previous employment. She applied to Capita first because he was still employed there at the time of his death. The other pension funds have already disbursed payments.
She added that resolving the Capita pension issue is essential for her to move forward:
"We're now a one-parent family with a single income. This is the last of my 'sadmin' tasks, and I can't really move on properly until it's resolved. Then we can start planning the rest of our lives properly."
Capita's Role and System Challenges
Capita assumed responsibility for the Civil Service Pension Scheme, which covers approximately 1.7 million members, in December last year after winning the contract in 2023.
The company has faced ongoing system issues, including a malfunctioning new online portal and extensive wait times for clients attempting to contact staff by phone.
Case of Pamela and James Moultrie
James Moultrie died shortly before Christmas at age 79. Before retirement, he worked for the MoD, and the couple relied on his pension income.
His wife Pamela, living in Dunfermline, Fife, anticipated a reduction in income after his death.
"I expected it to drop to half the amount," she said. "The full amount came in January - I thought it would just take a while to correct. But then the full amount came again in February.
So I contacted them again and they stopped the payments completely, saying I would need to apply all over again for the pension.
I've had no payments since then and no letters or contact of any kind. It's worrying, it's a lot to deal with on top of my husband's death."
Parliamentary Scrutiny and Public Response
In February, Capita appeared before the public accounts committee at Parliament to address criticisms regarding its management of the pension scheme.
In April, the company confirmed that some members' data had been compromised in a data breach.
Protests were held outside Capita's Annual General Meeting in London on Monday, reflecting public dissatisfaction.
Capita's Statement
Capita issued a statement saying:
"We continue to work with the Cabinet Office to establish normal service levels.
Additional trained resource remains in place, and our focus is on ensuring members of the Civil Service Pension Scheme receive the service they expect and deserve.
We are sorry for the worry and frustration any delays are causing."
