Pension Awareness Week serves as a timely reminder of the importance of pensions in our lives. While most discussions focus on retirement planning and tax benefits, there’s another crucial aspect that often goes unnoticed: Pension Loss, especially in legal cases involving personal injury or clinical negligence. At Frenkel Topping, we specialize in providing Expert Witness Reports on Pension Loss, a service that can make a significant difference in the outcome of your client’s case.
The Complexity of Pension Loss Calculations
Pension Loss calculations are far from straightforward, particularly when dealing with Defined Benefit Schemes. Here’s a checklist of the typical considerations we factor into any DB pension loss calculation:
- Changes to Government-backed schemes over decades
- Claimant’s membership in multiple sections of the pension scheme
- Current ‘at retirement’ behaviour of people in receipt of DB scheme pensions
- Early/late/multiple retirement factors
- Decision to take a lump sum or not
- Injury forcing early access to pension
- Impact on deferments vs banked payments in active service
- The impact of Reduced Life Expectancy
- High earners and their unique challenges
The Importance of Detail
Ignoring the intricate details in a pension loss claim can result in substantial financial differences for your client—sums they are rightfully entitled to. Our experience shows that including a financial expert witness report on pension loss can also make a significant pro-rate difference for shorter-term losses.
Why Choose Frenkel Topping?
We understand the complexities involved in pension loss calculations, including:
- The minefield of benefits of employment, before and after injury
- Tax implications on these benefits and pension contributions
- Different methods of deducting pension contributions
- The need for a realistic and supported career path for the Claimant
- The importance of inflating past earnings with accurate data
By engaging Frenkel Topping, you ensure that your client receives a thorough and detailed financial analysis, backed by our 30 years of expertise in often complex cases.
Flexibility in Service
We understand that you may not have permission to appoint an expert or may just require calculations for a schedule of loss. In such cases, we can act as your agent, as we have done for hundreds of law firms.
Conclusion
Pension Loss is a complex but critical aspect of legal cases involving personal injury or clinical negligence. As we celebrate Pension Awareness Week, let’s not overlook this vital component. If you’re a practitioner seeking to guarantee a thorough financial analysis for your client, Frenkel Topping is here to assist.
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