A Contingent Decision is a decision taken by a member, that would have been different had it not been for the discrimination identified by the courts. The decision will relate to their membership of the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) during the Remedy Period, 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022.

Members can apply to have their Contingent Decision assessed by the scheme to determine if it can be accepted. This application process is necessary as specific criteria must be met.

At present, the only Contingent Decision you can apply for is to buy back opted out service. This means you are;

• A Member who would not have opted-out if you had been allowed to remain in your Legacy Scheme beyond your transition date, or,
• A protected Member who had not been allowed to join the 2015 Reformed Scheme from 1 April 2015.

We will open applications for other types of Contingent Decisions at a later date agreed by the Scheme Manager.

You could apply to buy back service from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022 if you opted out between 12 March 2012 and 28 February 2022, and the reason you opted out was in response to the discrimination identified by the courts. 

If your application is successful, your opted-out service can be bought back for all qualifying service built up from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022. Your service will be reckonable in your Legacy scheme.

Eligibility summary:

• You’re eligible for 2015 Remedy.
• The service you want to buy back is during the period of 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022.
• You opted out between 12 March 2012 and 28 February 2022.
• You would not have opted out if you had been allowed to remain in the Legacy Scheme beyond your transition date, or you were a protected Member who was not allowed to join the 2015 Reformed Scheme from 1 April 2015. Evidence of this will be required. If you do not meet the above criteria your application will be declined.

No. If you joined one of the Partnership schemes you are not classed as an opt out member. The applications process for those members who joined a Partnership scheme will open at a later date.

Remedy Opt Out Member Contributions Estimator

The Remedy Opt Out Member Contributions Estimator is a tool designed to help members understand the potential costs involved in buying back opted-out service. It's important you complete this process before proceeding with your application.  

To ensure the information input into the Remedy Opt Out Member Contributions Estimator is as accurate as possible, you'll need;

• An understanding of the dates you opted out of the pension scheme.
• Details of your salary information (including bonuses and allowances) for the period you opted out of the pension scheme. This could be obtained from payslips, P60s or tax returns.

If you don't have the necessary information, you can contact your employer/previous employer for the necessary details.

Evidence requirements

You'll be required to supply evidence to support your application. You can supply whatever evidence you feel supports your application in the best way. Some examples of evidence may be:  

• Letters or emails with your employer and/or union.
• Letters, emails or decisions from the Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS).
• Letters, emails or documents from a financial adviser or any third-party advice including an independent advice or advocacy service, for example your local Citizens Advice Bureau.
• A formal complaint or claim, or
• Any other written correspondence that demonstrates the changes to your pension influenced your financial decision.

IMPORTANT: If you don't supply evidence, there's an increased risk that your application will be declined. 

1. Fully read the FAQs and check your eligibility.
2. Complete the Remedy Opt Out Member Contributions Estimator.
3. Supply your supporting evidence.
4. Complete the application form, either online or printing a copy and returning to the Scheme Administrator by post to;

Civil Service Pensions

PO Box 2017

Liverpool

L69 2BU

1. You will receive an acknowledgement within 5 working days of us receiving your application.
2. We will complete eligibility checks and the assessment of your application. During this assessment we may contact you for further information, or to clarify information you have provided as part of your application.
3. We will provide you with a written outcome of the assessment within 8 weeks of receipt of your application. The outcome will confirm that your application has been ether accepted or declined and the reasons why we have come to that decision.
4. If we cannot provide you with an outcome within the agreed timescales detailed above, we will issue a holding letter detailing the next steps and timescales for completion of the assessment.

We'll issue you with the below documents:  

• Schedule of Contributions – this will confirm the total value of the contributions due, inclusive of interest that has been applied and adjusted for tax relief.
• Remediable Service Statement (RSS) – this will show you the current value and impact to your accrued benefits should you decide to opt back in. It will show benefits in both your Legacy and alpha scheme, if you have not made an Immediate Choice or a choice as part of a retirement. For members who have already made a choice of the benefits to be paid for the Remedy period, you will only be provided with an RSS illustrating the choice you have made.
• Acceptance Form – this is to be completed and sent back to the Scheme Administrator as confirmation to reinstate your opted-out service and your agreement to pay back the outstanding contributions plus interest in full. This form will also contain instructions on how to make a payment.
• Pension Savings Statement (PSS) – this will show the potential impact on your Annual Allowance and associated tax.

We may need to engage with your employer/previous employer(s) to obtain additional information to calculate your outstanding contributions and generate these documents. We aim to have these documents completed and issued to you as soon as possible following the issue of your final decision letter.

Once in receipt of your Acceptance Form, we will process your request, reinstate your service record and collect the outstanding contributions owed. We will send confirmation once this has been completed. You will have 12 months to decide and send back your Acceptance Form.

If your application is rejected, we'll provide you with details to explain the reason(s) for this. You can then choose to accept this decision, or you can appeal against the decision.  Further information will be sent to you.

You’ll also have the right of appeal to The Pensions Ombudsman.

You can apply on behalf of a member if you have Power of Attorney (POA) or are legally acting on their behalf.

You can also apply if you're making decisions on behalf of a deceased member.

If you're applying on behalf of someone else, you must provide a copy of the relevant documentation showing you have legal power to act on their behalf.  This could be, but not limited to Grant of Probate, a valid Will, Letters of Administration or Power of Attorney.

• Annual Allowance – if you choose to buy back opted-out service and increase your pension benefits, there may be a change to your Annual Allowance.
• Costs – it’s important to understand that if your application is successful and you proceed with the reinstatement of benefits, you are agreeing to pay back all outstanding contributions plus interest, for your full service to be re-instated. You must ensure this option is right for you and that you can afford to pay back the contributions in full.

We’ll publish details of the Contingent Decision application process on our website once it is available.  It will be open to all members who are in-scope of 2015 Remedy (McCloud), including those that have left or retired from the Civil Service.  All Contingent Decision applicants will be asked to provide evidence on the basis of the original decision, to show it resulted from the age discrimination identified by the McCloud judgment.  As we cannot guarantee that an application will be successful, please don’t make any decisions about your pension based on an assumption that an application will be agreed.

If a future Contingent Decision application is agreed, you will be provided with information about how the scheme proposes to adjust your pension, and whether there are any costs to be accounted for e.g. additional contributions to be paid where a period of opted-out service is being reinstated.  You will have the chance to decide whether you wish to proceed at this stage.