Devastated Ken Noden spent 26 years paying into his £36,000-a-year pension - only to be told the day before he was due to start receiving payments, he could end up with nothing.
Mr Noden, of Netherfield, Benfleet, was sent a letter the day before his 60th birthday saying that his pension company Cuthbert Heath Holdings was going into liquidation.
Devastated - Ken Noden and wife Chris could miss out on £36,000 a year after pension company Cuthbert Heath Holdings went into liquidation Picture: TERENCE BUNCH
The pension scheme was being "wound-up", which meant people who had already retired would need to be paid in full before any money goes to members still in employment, no matter how close they are to retirement.
Mr Noden, said: "When I read the letter I was in complete shock.
"I had faithfully paid into the pension scheme for so many years so I would be financially well off when I retired and now I don't know what the future holds."
He said it was "unfair" how people who had paid into the pension fund and since retired, even though they had only been with the firm a few years, would be better off than him.
Mr Noden said: "These people will get a full settlement with the money that I paid into the fund - how can that be right?"
Mr Noden, who worked for the company between 1966 and 1992, said he and his wife Chris look likely to have to rely on their savings and another small pension he paid into at another job.
He said he received a statement from the company in November 1999 which predicted his final pension would be £36,000 per year.
This was slightly more than expected so he took early retirement last summer ahead of his 60th birthday - which was when the pension was due to begin - though he wishes he had not now.
Mr Noden's only other hope is a Bill being considered in Parliament on June 20.
The Pensions (Winding-Up) Bill proposed that people who lose their pensions are given 90 per cent of what they were promised from the register of unclaimed assets.
Published Tuesday, June 10, 2003
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