New service aims to end pension form problems

A new service launched by the Department for Social Development this week aims at smoothing out difficulties those applying for fresh retirement pensions encounter when filling out forms.

Every year there are about 20,000 fresh claims for retirement pensions in Northern Ireland. Around 5,500 of these claims are incorrect, inaccurate or incomplete, or do not have all relevant documents attached, for example, birth or marriage certificates.

The new service launched by Department for Social Development minister Maurice Morrow provides people who are about to retire with the opportunity to complete an electronic claim form via a free phone tele-claims facility based in Castlecourt, Belfast.

With the new tele-pensions service it takes between 6 and 11 minutes to complete a tele-claims form.

Speaking at the launch, the Minister said: “Whether you are 25 or 65, filling in a form can be a tedious and difficult task. This new and innovative tele-claims service will give older people a free, convenient and straightforward service to help them complete their claim for retirement pension.

“Good government is about improving access to services and giving customers what they want. Research has indicated that older people find the form difficult to complete. Now, one ten minute phone call can be all that it takes to apply for the retirement pension.”

Tom Cairns, Director of Corporate Affairs and Advocacy, of Age Concern Northern Ireland, said: “We welcome this new service. Any initiative that eases the pain of completing complex forms must be saluted. The new tele-claims service will make the first step into retirement a little easier by making the retirement pension form more accessible and it effectively speeds up the process.”

However, the tele-claims service is exclusively for the use of people who are about to retire and cannot be used as a help line for customers already claiming retirement pension. (AMcE)