Capita has set a new date to launch its retirement modeller for the Civil Service Pension Scheme after months of delay.
Richard Vianello, the new director of Civil Service Pensions at the Cabinet Office, said in an update on the scheme's recovery published on Friday: “Many of you have been asking about the retirement modeller.
"Capita have now confirmed that it will be available around mid-October. I will update you about its progress in September, when I expect to see a near final version.”
Retirement modellers help pension scheme members plan for their future by exploring different retirement scenarios and understanding how their benefits could change depending on the age they retire. However, the CSPS has not had one since its administration transferred from MyCSP to Capita in December last year.
Capita was originally supposed to launch a new modeller by 31 March 2026 but MacDonald revealed in April that it had been delayed due to "functionality issues”.
MacDonald said the modeller would only go live when it is “able to show pension estimates for all members using different scenarios, pulling through accurate data” and has been “rigorously tested”.
In his 6 August update, Vianello also gave some more details on the Cabinet Office’s work to get Capita to recover the scheme to acceptable service levels.
He confirmed that consultancy Grant Thornton, appointed as remedial advisors to “force day-to-day operational rectification”, is “acting as an independent third party, paid for and appointed by Capita" but under direction from the Cabinet Office.
The firm have "extensive expertise in pensions administration" Vianellos said, and will assess Capita's rectification plan to give a view on whether the timescales are realistic and whether there is anything more which can be done to clear backlogs at pace.
“I can assure you that they are getting under the bonnet of the plan, to really understand the assumptions that underpin it," he said.
Vianello said the Cabinet Office has also now appointed an auditor, which will focus on Capita’s “rear view activity”. He said this will include establishing “whether the correct processes are being followed to the right quality for quotes, bereavements and pension payments” and looking into “whether Capita had (and has) all that it needs to do the things they said they would do from Day 1”.
“This will give an understanding of the situation up to now and how Capita is operating,” he said.
Vianello said the current key figures on the state of the backlog are:
- 17,014 members are waiting for a retirement quote, including those for future dates
- There are 13,047 bereavement cases for Capita to resolve
- Capita is waiting for responses from 438 third parties as part of death-in-service work. 203 death in service cases are over four months old and 175 are with Capita to progress as there is a spouse, civil partner or family waiting for the payment that they are due
He also gave an update on the 2015 McCloud Remedy, noting that more and more members are starting to contact Capita about this. Vianello said members should not contact the centre for information currently “as Capita have yet to work through the recalculations”.
Vianello said he has “asked for a plan and timescales for completion, and will review this alongside the overall remediation plan”.
“I genuinely understand your exasperation at having to wait for information about the impact of McCloud, and know your expectations (and mine) are that this work should be well ahead of where we are,” he said. “However, contacting Capita will not speed up your options calculations.”
Vianello added: “I know members’ patience is wearing thin, and behind each case there is a person or bereaved family increasingly frustrated and angry at being on the receiving end of poor service.
“My team is making every possible effort to stabilise operations, hold our supplier to account and work to improve the customer journey going forward.