AFPS 75 Additional benefits
 

About to fill in AFPS Form 4 to increase lump sum to 4 times salary. However, there are also 2 other boxes I could tick which are:

2. Maximise my Widow's/Widower's claim entitlement to a pension, based on representative pay rates for my rank at the date of my retirement or earlier death.

3. Enable my total retirement benefits and all benefits payable to my survivors or estate on my death, other than attributable death or invaliding benefits, to be calculated on the same general basis as AFPS benefits, but derived from my final salary excluding additional pay and allowances, rather than from representative pay for my rank.


So does anyone know what these mean and what the implications are for ticking these boxes? Are there any traps?

Can I tick all three?

Armed Forces Pension Society is your friend...and worth the the 30 Pound (or whatever it costs)

Que? How can that be? There must be a compensating reduction somewhere else, surely? There are gurus out there, please advise as I am currently base leg.

Dogstar

That is for AVCs to increase your lump sum on DEATH to 4 times your salary - the way you wrote your post it sounds like you expected it for your lump sum on retirement...

...or have you had a premonition?

LJ

LJ,

You are right. The lump sum I refer to is indeed on death. I am in the process of sorting out things just in case and resigning the form after everyone in AFPS 75 was removed from AVCs when the 05 pension came in as it increased AFPS 75 from x2 lumpsum to x3. I had thought I had the best deal going and also thought I was still paying for AVCs (the change in pay statements lulled me into thinking that a similar figure was my AVC!).

It was on looking at the form that the two other AVC options came to my attention. The last one says to me that my pension will be based on the actual individual's final salary rather than the nominal figure called 'representative pay' which I believe is an average for the rank. It looks to me that this is a good deal.

However, are there any hidden catches?

I have been informed by PSF that the increase in death sum costs 0.3% of salary. I cannot, however, find a civvy link which explains the cost of the other 2 cases. Anyone else out there have a link?