Money

No compulsory retirement soon
From next April companies will no longer be able to tell employees when to retire. At the moment the so-called ‘default retirement age’ is 65. An employer cannot set an earlier retirement age than that. But if it clearly states that it is 65 (or a later age) then it can insist that all staff leave on that birthday.

But not for long. The new Government has stated it will “phase out the default retirement age from April 2011.” Iain Duncan Smith, the new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, told a meeting of pension professionals and journalists in June  

“I am absolutely convinced this is the right thing to do. A default retirement age offers companies an excuse not to think constructively [about their older workers]. Offloading people because they are 65 speaks badly of management. Why should business need Government to regulate when they can retire people?”

So from April next year – perhaps with some phasing-in provisions – no employer will be able to sack an employee just because of his or her age. And about time to.

Pension age to rise
The new Government is also determined to increase the age at which the state pension is paid. Current plans would start to raise the age towards 66 from April 2024 with further rises to 67 and 68 completed by 2046. But the Coalition Government wants to do it much quicker, starting to raise the pension age towards 66 from 2016 for men with women following in 2020 as their own state pension age reaches 65. After that the age would be increased further and more quickly than the last Government planned. Iain Duncan Smith has said it might even rise automatically as life expectancy grows. Men reaching pension age can now expect to live to just over age 86 and women to almost 89 – around a third of their adult life.

The Government wants to hear your views but get your skates on as the closing date is 6 August 2010. Download the consultation document at dwp.gov.uk/docs/spa-inc-to-66-call-for-evidence.pdf or email the team at spa.review@dwp.gsi.gov.uk

Sorry, we’re closed…
There are 280 tax enquiry offices around the UK where taxpayers can make an appointment for face to face advice. It is a service particularly valued by older people who like to talk to someone they can see and who can look at their documents. But in March this year 58 offices had their opening hours cut. The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) claims some now open only one day a week. Another 117 are under threat as the Revenue consults on making further cuts. And those changes were announced before the recent Budget. If HMRC has to bear the 25% cuts in its costs that other departments are threatened with then enquiry offices could disappear altogether. Robin Williamson of LITRG says the Revenue is wrong to assume that people do not want a face to face service.

“Demand for a face to face service remains high. But the inaccessibility and frequently poor quality of the service now provided by Enquiry Centres has caused that demand to flow instead to the voluntary sector.”

Older people on a low income who need help with tax can get it from Tax Help for Older People. Qualified volunteer advisers are available throughout the UK. Call 0845 601 3321 to find your nearest. The service is free. More at taxvol.org.uk

Don’t call me! (and don’t write either).
If you hate junk mail (and does anyone like it?) and get even more annoyed by cold phone calls (especially those silent ones) then you can ban them both in one place. Consumer Focus – the state-funded body which campaigns for consumer rights – has set up a new website where you can register your details to ban cold calls and junk mail. It costs you nothing. The mailing and telephone preference services are run by the Direct Marketing Association and for many years you have been able to register with them to stop junk mail and cold calls. But the new website does both at once and automatically renews your preference when it runs out. Your data is held securely and is never used for an y commercial purpose. Beware of any other websites that offer to stop junk mail or cold calls for a fee.  There is never ever any need to pay. More at stayprivate.org. If you prefer to use the original with the Direct Marketing Association it is at mpsonline.org.uk. If you do not have access to a computer at home you can use one free – and get help – at most public libraries.

Doorstep sales
And talking of cold-calling, I have a golden rule. I never ever buy anything at my front door. It may seem rude but I find that saying that ‘Sorry but I never buy at the front door, ever’ while closing it and thanking them makes them realise there is no hope with me.

Sometimes such callers are thieves – like David Parkins who was jailed recently for four and a half years recently for swindling a 64 year old man in Walsall out of £170,000 for work on his house that did not need doing. But some are run of the mill sales people. Especially those who try to ‘save you money on your fuel bills’ and then proceed to try to persuade you to change your gas or electricity supplier (preferably both) to the one they are working for with no real knowledge or information about how much you pay now or how much – if anything – you might save by changing.

Research by comparison website confused.com found that doorstep sales people could leave some customers paying £183 a year more than they should for their fuel. Now, let’s be clear, confused.com also makes its living by getting you to switch from one energy supplier to another. But at least it compares all those available and finds the best. If you want to use a non-commercial switching site then go to the one run by the consumer organisation Which? at which.co.uk/switch.

e-mail Paul Lewis on paul@paullewis.co.uk