91Èȱ¬

Pension service line

The 91Èȱ¬'s in-house Pension and Benefits Centre offers prompt help on everything to do with the Scheme. Our pension service line is currently available from 10.00am to 4.00pm, Monday to Friday. Please quote your NI number and date of birth when contacting us.

myPension online

Our secure site to access your pension information

If you are a member of the Scheme, you can view details of your pension benefits through .

Some of the benefits of myPension online are:

• See a summary of all your benefits on one page
• Perform pension estimates and see results online if your pension is not yet in payment
• Request pension or transfer quotation estimate packs having run an indicative quotation and seen the results online 
• Update your nomination details once to update all your pension records (previously each pension record had to be updated separately). 
• Update your bank details, print copies of your payslips and P60 if your pension is in payment.

To register

Visit  then look for 'Not Registered Yet' and click 'Register Now', you will need to enter the following:

• Surname
• Date of Birth
• National Insurance Number
• Personal Security Number -  If you don't have this, please call the pension service line on 0303 081 2848.

Once you have entered these details, we will email you an activation key and a link for you to set up your account. If you use Google’s Gmail service, please check your ‘Spam’ folder for the email myPension online – Activation Key Request. To move this to your Inbox and ensure that future emails are delivered to your Inbox, right-click on the heading and select ‘Not spam’.

You will need to enter your personal details again with the activation key. You will then need to set yourself a username and password and a memorable word, you will need to enter these details each time you login to the site, so make sure you remember them!

Pension Seminars

These conferences have been held for a number of years and have proved to be of much help and value to those about to retire or claim their pension. The online session gives members a greater understanding of their benefits. The session is designed for members of the 91Èȱ¬ Pension Scheme who are approaching age 55 or over and are thinking about claiming pension benefits upon leaving the 91Èȱ¬, reaching normal pension age or taking flexible retirement and continuing to work for the 91Èȱ¬.

It may be of benefit to run a pension calculation by visiting . You can also get a State Pension Forecast by visiting 

The course covers:

91Èȱ¬ Pension Scheme:

• How your pension is calculated
• Early retirement
• Normal retirement
• Flexible payment
• Your options - including commutation, partial refund, spouse's and dependant's pensions and buying extra pension.

Pension Flexibility

The 91Èȱ¬ has put in place additional support to help eligible* Scheme members consider their options including whether claiming payment of their deferred pension or transferring it to a defined contribution (DC) arrangement in order to take advantage of the flexibilities might better suit their particular needs. This includes independent financial advice funded by the 91Èȱ¬.

This video provides information about the differences between a defined benefit (DB) pension (such as the 91Èȱ¬ Pension Scheme) and a DC pension, the option to transfer a DB pension to a DC pension and how the transfer option works.

*To be eligible members must be aged 55 or over and have a deferred Scheme pension with a transfer value of at least £30,000.

Independent Financial Advice

The pension service line cannot give you any financial advice. You should consider taking independent financial advice before making any decision about your options and whether to take your benefits now. For those aged 55 or over, the 91Èȱ¬ has made available independent funded advice via WPS Advisory Limited (wpsadvisory.com), who are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, to support members considering their options.

If you are aged 55 or over and thinking about taking your pension benefits now and wish to take advice from WPS Advisory Ltd which is paid for by the 91Èȱ¬ then please contact our service line at myPension@bbc.co.uk or by calling 0303 081 2848. Your details will then be shared with WPS Advisory Ltd who will contact you directly. Please provide a valid email address when you get in touch.

As an alternative or in addition to receiving advice from WPS Advisory Ltd, you can appoint your own financial adviser at your own cost. There are lots of ways to find an adviser including dedicated financial advisor search websites. You can find out more about how to choose a financial adviser at , a free service provided by the Money and Pensions Service. Pension guidance is also available to help you understand your options in relation to what you can do with your AVC funds. See below for information on Pension Wise for more details.

Pension Guidance

MoneyHelper is a service from the government that offers free and impartial guidance on all aspects of pensions and finance to help you.

Pension Wise offers tailored pension guidance over the telephone. You can get free guidance from Pension Wise if:

• you’re aged 50 or over, and
• have a UK-based defined contribution pension (LifePlan, NEST or if you paid Additional Voluntary Contributions) – not a final salary or career average pension.

or call 0800 138 3944 between 8am and 8pm.

91Èȱ¬ Financial Assistance Fund

A 91Èȱ¬ Financial Assistance Fund grant may be awarded if you or your dependants are struggling to cover unexpected and unaffordable one-off costs. The basic conditions for a grant are that it should involve expenditure which is extraordinary, unforeseen, necessary, and without assistance, would involve hardship for the individual. Each case is considered on its merits and awarded at the Trustees’ discretion.

You can find further information and apply at bbc.co.uk/mypension/financial

Pension Tracing Service

If you have lost track of your pension benefits with a previous employer or scheme, you can contact the Department of Work and Pensions' Pension Tracing Service. They will give you an up-to-date address for the trustees of that scheme.

Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure

The 91Èȱ¬ Pension Scheme has a two-stage procedure to help resolve disputes or complaints. Details can be found on our Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure page.

Pensions Ombudsman

If you have a complaint concerning your 91Èȱ¬ pension arrangements, you should first make a formal complaint to us. You can access our full complaints procedure via the Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure (above).

If we are unable to resolve the complaint with you, then you can refer your complaint to The Pensions Ombudsman.

Pensions Regulator

The Pensions Regulator oversees the running of pension schemes and can intervene in cases where scheme trustees, employers or advisers may have failed in their duties.

The regulator has powers to protect funds held in pension schemes. It also aims to promote high standards and good practice in the pensions industry.