MyCSP became the biggest public sector body to break away from central government in 2012 and become a mutual. With £4bn a year in civil service pension payments, MyCSP previously outsourced the payment function to Capita. But as of 18 September 2014, the administration of the pensions in payments and preserved pension schemes were brought in-house.
According to the Guardian, “this coincided with the late delivery of a new IT system,” which was provided by a subsidiary of Equiniti, the private sector partner who owns a 51% stake in the mutual.
The Guardian reported that a fault in the new IT system “meant payments have been delayed to civil service pensioners living overseas.”
The article continues: “problems have resulted in delays to pensions being paid, extra work for staff and a huge increase in complaints, with pensioners struggling to get through to My CSP to get their issues dealt with.”
Asked to comment, MyCSP said that only a “very small proportion” of the 660,000 people they serve were affected by delayed payments.
A spokesperson said: "Our members are our top priority and we are doing everything we can to put this right. We have brought in additional staff and are extending our opening hours to deal with queries and to resolve the small number of outstanding payments. We are confident that in the future our service will be more efficient and convenient than ever.”
Are you a former civil servant still waiting for your pension payment? Contact our reporter matt.foster@dods.co.uk