Capita chief exec Adolfo Hernandez and Cabinet Office permanent secretary Cat Little have today issued an apology to Civil Service Pension Scheme members, acknowledging “serious issues” which have caused delays to quotes and payments, leading to financial hardship for some.
“This is not the service members deserve,” they said in a statement on Capita’s website.
“Capita and the Cabinet Office are deeply sorry for the worry, frustration and distress this has caused - particularly for those dealing with bereavement or ill health. Both Capita and the Cabinet Office take this responsibility very seriously and are urgently working together to put this right.”
The online apology outlines that Capita inherited a backlog of 86,000 cases when it took over administration of the pension scheme on 1 December, and that this led to “higher than expected volumes of calls and complex queries which created further issues”.
A specialist team led by HMRC second permanent secretary Angela MacDonald, in partnership with the Cabinet Office, was put in place last week to lead oversight of an urgent recovery plan for the scheme.
Today’s statement sets out the priority actions that MacDonald’s team have agreed. These are:
- Prioritising urgent cases: Bereavements, ill-health retirements and hardship situations are being addressed first.
- Additional resources: Over 150 additional staff are being deployed to Capita to support clearing correspondence backlogs and to speed up processing, bringing the total workforce to more than 650.
- Support for hardship: The Cabinet Office is working with departments to agree interim support measures for those experiencing financial hardship due to delayed payments.
Capita said it expects to restore service levels for the most urgent cases by the end of February, although it does not give a timeframe for the recovery of the remaining priority cases.
Capita has previously said that the work-in-progress backlog left by the previous pensions provider MyCSP was more than double the figure of 37,000 cases declared by MyCSP when Capita signed the contract to take over the administration of the scheme. MyCSP has maintained that all outstanding work items were fully disclosed and agreed with Cabinet Office senior management prior to commencement of the handover process.
Considerable problems have arisen since the transfer from MyCSP to Capita last month, with many CSW readers getting in touch to raise concerns. Unions have been calling for urgent measures to address the issues, which include people waiting for months for pension payments, causing significant financial hardship.
These measures include a call for additional resources to clear the backlog, and financial compensation for those experiencing delays, as well as a pause to voluntary exit schemes until the backlog is addressed.
Today’s statement promises the introduction of “interim support measures” for those experiencing financial hardship. CSW understands the Cabinet Office is offering immediate financial support for civil servants facing delayed payments. It is not yet clear what the level of support might equate to.
In a separate all-staff email, Cabinet Office perm sec Cat Little reiterated the apology and addressed the matter of voluntary exit schemes:
"We understand the anxiety and disruption caused by delays in VES quotations for colleagues planning or considering voluntary exit,” she said. “These cases are being prioritised, and we are developing additional mechanisms for less complex quotes, although some delays may continue during the recovery period."
Little added: "If you’re having difficulty accessing the portal and/or your details on the portal are not fully complete, please be assured that your data is not lost and Capita is working to resolve these issues as soon as possible."
The online statement also says that Capita is undertaking a distinct project to complete the outstanding work mandated by the McCloud judgement, which involves issuing benefit choices to approximately 74,000 pensioners and 21,000 deferred members.
For those experiencing financial hardship, former officials who retired in the last 12 months have been asked to contact their former department for support, while those who left the civil service more than 12 months ago should raise hardship concerns directly with Capita.