Archives: PCIP Stories
90-Year-Old Widow Receives Reduction in Recoupment
Betty had been receiving an ongoing survivor benefit and Health Insurance Allowance from a public pension plan for over 10 years, ever since her husband passed away. She contacted the Western States Pension Assistance Project (WSPAP) after receiving an overpayment letter, which said that Betty’s husband was not due the Health Insurance Allowance, and his […]
Pension Payment Pop-Up Provided After WSPAP Advocacy
Todd, an older adult who lives in San Francisco, called the Western States Pension Assistance Project (WSPAP) for help with his pension. Todd and his spouse divorced several years ago, and fortunately, his pension plan provides for a “pop-up” increase to his monthly benefit in the event of a divorce. However, Todd’s retirement plan told […]
Western States Negotiates Life Changing Settlement
A 62-year-old Western States Pension Assistance Project (WSPAP) client, Mary, was preparing for retirement. She had earned a pension for her work at a Californian telephone company in the 1980s. Mary routinely checked her electronic statements to confirm that her monthly benefit would be around $250 per month. However, before reaching the normal retirement age […]
Western States Reduces Retiree’s Repayments
Joe, a 76-year-old retiree, worked for his employer for over 18 years and had been retired for 15 years when he received a letter notifying him of an overpayment from his pension plan. The letter indicated that Joe owed the plan over $87,000. Joe hadn’t had any reason to suspect his benefit was inaccurate. In […]
PAC Helps Man Receive Benefits After Merger
The Pension Action Center (PAC) recently helped a man named Jerry, who worked for a communications business in the 1980s and 90s. He worked for 9 years and became fully vested in his pension after 5 years of service. After he left his position, the business was bought by a larger company. Jerry was told […]
Widow Receives Full Survivor Benefits Thanks to PAC
Elaine contacted the Pension Action Center (PAC) for help in securing a survivor benefit. After her husband passed away, she tried to contact the plan to begin receiving her benefits. While the plan never denied that she was owed a benefit, it proved particularly challenging for Elaine to contact the plan for information or have […]
Trellis Ensures Full Share of Retirement Benefits for Survivor of Domestic Violence
Mary, a survivor of domestic violence during her marriage, represented herself in her divorce from her abusive ex-husband. After the divorce was granted, Mary reached out to Trellis and the Retirement Rights Project for help dividing her ex-husband’s retirement benefits. A volunteer attorney for Iowa Legal Aid and the Project drafted a legal document […]
Mid-Atlantic Pension Counseling Project Jumps Hurdles to Get Widow Survivor’s Benefits
Sylvia is the widow of a Mr. L, a member of a municipal retirement system, who died in 2020. Although separated, Sylvia and her husband continued to have an amicable relationship, and he named her as the beneficiary of his pension. But before disbursing any payments to her, the municipal pension plan insisted she surmount […]
From Zero to Two Pensions – With Help From the New England Pension Assistance Project
David Howell of Connecticut had worked in many different jobs for Stop & Shop from 1964 until 1991. He started work as a parking lot attendant and ended as a manager, so he was surprised to hear from Stop & Shop that, with all those years of work, he was not eligible for a pension. […]
South Central Pension Rights Project helps widow claim survivor benefit from Monsanto
Naomi Francisco’s husband worked as an engineer for Monsanto for 35 years and began receiving his pension in 1985. When her husband passed away, the payments suddenly stopped. Wondering why, Naomi contacted Monsanto’s benefit center and was told that her husband had elected a single-life annuity with no survivor benefit. Naomi was shocked because she […]
Mid-America Pension Rights Project works with Department of Labor to overturn wrongful benefit denial
Like many people approaching retirement, when Margaret turned 65 she contacted her former employer to apply for the pension she had earned during her career. Margaret was surprised when she was told that her former employer’s pension plan had been terminated and annuities had been purchased for all employees who were eligible to receive a […]
Upper Midwest Pension Rights Project helps widow avoid recoupment for overpayment
Pension plans can often make mistakes when calculating pension benefits. These errors can result in retirees, through no fault of their own, receiving pensions in the wrong amount. To correct their own mistakes, pension plans often ask retirees to repay the amount that has been overpaid. Below is a description of what happened when Annie*, […]
