Lump sum death grant

Depending on your length of service a death grant may be payable:

• More than 12 months’ service: 3 x final pay (which is your highest pay in the previous 10 years)
• Less than 12 months’ service: 3 x annual pay

If you have opted out of the 2015 scheme, for example if you have deferred benefits, your beneficiaries would not be eligible for a death grant.

Payment of pension instead if over age 75
If an active member dies after age 75, no lump-sum death grant is payable. Instead, a pension is paid for five years to the eligible beneficiary.

A death grant can be paid to:

1. your surviving spouse or civil partner
2. if you have no spouse, or civil partner it can be paid to a co-habiting partner
3. if you have no spouse, no civil partner, and no co-habiting partner at the discretion of the police pension authority, to a person nominated by you
4. otherwise, to your legal personal representative – usually the executor of your will – and it will therefore form part of your estate

Making a nomination
If you would like to make a nomination for who your death grant should be paid to (should you not qualify for point 1 and 2 above), you can request a nomination form from your administrator.

The lump sum death benefit allowance limits the total amount of tax free benefits you or your beneficiaries can take from all your pension schemes. Usually this is £1,073,100. 

Full details can be found on the government website.

If you die as a result of an injury on duty or die within 12 months of receiving an injury on duty as a result of that injury, your spouse or civil partner (or child or dependent relative) may be entitled to a gratuity under the Police (Injury Benefit) Regulations 2006. This does not form part of the pension scheme. 

If, when you die, the various awards payable under the police pension scheme (excluding the lump sum death grant) are less than your total pension contributions, an extra award equal to the balance of those contributions will be paid to your estate.