In the grand scheme of things, AFPS-15 is about as good as a public sector pension can get. Comparing a CARE scheme with a Final Salary scheme is like comparing apples and oranges; there will be losers and there will be winners.. more of the former I guess, although CARE schemes are great social levellers. It'll be interesting to see what the MoD does to maintain interest with the thrusters, who tend to lose out with career average schemes.
I think that the Forces Pensions Society did a great job batting for the troops; I think I'm right in saying that SP are the only public sector workers who don't make an active contribution to their occupational pension/retirements. I'm stupified that it is going to take until next year to get a calculator out. But now possibly, its up to the AFPRB to get stuck in, and quickly.
I was/am uncertain about the decision to use an average earnings index as a revaluation factor; but when you look at what the ONS wants to do to RPI, you have to wonder where the greatest threat to incomes (before and after retirement) is going to come from. All the clamour is on the detail, and in many ways, thats great from the
Exchequer's perspective. But the elephant in the room, in my opinion, right now, is this.
Change to RPI is politically motivated - Echelon Wealthcare
The
Exchequer can argue (relative) pounds and pence about the finer points until the cows come home, because its easy to engage and tangle over tangible issues like tax relief, annual allowances, contributions etc. But the technical aspects and potential impacts of the bigger picture stand to cause more problems but slip under the radar because they are harder to comprehend.
Everyone is different when it comes to working out the impact of AFPS-15. Get the basics right, if you're married use your partner's various (tax relief etc) allowances, make use of your own (ISA etc) allowances, have you done a self assesment and if not, will it be worth doing one(?), make sure your savings and investments are doing well and are suitable for you.. and know what, where, when and how you want retirement to look like. As soon as you've done
that, you can start to reverse engineer and work out if what you're doing now is fine, and/or what you might have to do to get on track, if it isn't.