Request

In relation to 'substitution awards' made by the NHSBSA please can you advise

1. how many claims for substitution awards are outstanding at 01/01/24?
2. what is the average processing time for these awards - from receipt to actual payment ?
3. if average time can't be calculated please advise the longest and shortest processing times in the last 12 months?
4. advise why the department has no targets and will give no indication of expected processing times when requested?

Response

Question 1

As of 24 January 2024, there are 6,317 substitute award cases outstanding.

Question 2

The average processing time can’t be calculated for these awards as they are outstanding. The awards would need to have been completed be able to calculate the average processing time.

If you wish to request the average processing time for claims which have been fully processed, please submit a fresh request.

Question 3

Of the 21,357 substitute awards completed between 1 January 2023 and 23 January 2024, the longest processing time was 2,772 calendar days and the shortest processing time was 0 days. Processing time has been calculated as the number of calendar days between the date a substitute award was logged on our system to the date it was marked as completed on our system.

Question 4

We have a maximum of 12 months to revise benefits (Substitute Awards) to avoid tax implications but aim to process as soon as possible depending on resource availability.

External factors outside the control of NHS Pensions can also contribute to processing times. In the interests of completeness, for between 1 January 2023 and 23 January 2024 the mean processing time for a substitute award was 70 calendar days, with the median processing time being 21 calendar days.

We are proactively working to process substitute awards alongside other priority workloads, including but not limited to, first awards. We will work with our Contact Centre Agents to provide visibility of expected processing times, so they are better able to support our members with queries.