If your application for ill-health retirement under the NHS Pensions Scheme has been rejected or only partially successful at Tier 1 and you are thinking of appealing against the outcome, you may find the following information useful.

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The NHS Pension Scheme provides two levels of ill-health retirement benefits: Tier 1 and Tier 2.  Further information can be found at the following link: Applying for ill health pension benefits 

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Tier 1: The employee must be permanently incapable of carrying out the duties of their own job due to ill-health.

Tier 2: The employee must be permanently incapable of engaging in regular employment of like duration to their normal NHS Job due to ill-health.

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Appeals against the ill-health retirement outcome

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It is not uncommon for an ill-health retirement application to be unsuccessful or only partially successful. For example, in 2016, out of 3111 applications, only 1350 (44%) applicants were awarded Tier 2 benefits. Many employees do not appeal because the appeal process can be daunting. 

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If you wish to appeal against the outcome, you will have to follow an Internal Dispute Resolution (IDR) process, which has two stages. Stage 1 involves completing the DRP1 form, giving your details. You are expected to provide further medical evidence to support your appeal. You can request a medical report from your GP and/or hospital specialist for this purpose, but it is less likely that your GP or hospital specialist will have the knowledge of ill-health retirement criteria. Therefore, a comprehensive and specific occupational health report from an independent consultant occupational physician is likely to be more valuable to the success of your appeal. 

 

Seeking an expert independent occupational health report

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​Our consultant occupational physician has knowledge and extensive experience of the NHS pension scheme, its ill-health retirement criteria and appeal process.

 

We will

• review the available evidence, including medical and occupational health reports,

• carefully analyse the reasons given by the scheme's medical advisor for not supporting your ill-health retirement application.

• arrange an occupational health consultation and

• provide an expert report.

 

The report may strengthen your appeal and/or help you to consider whether to appeal against the outcome.

 

Please refer to our terms and conditions for this service.​

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