Teachers' Pensions Avis 

Labyrinthine login levels of a system that doesn't work.
34 minutes on a phone loop with no reply.
Hopeless communication with Bots.
A disgracefully frustrating organisation.
Next step, the Ombudsman
I am good on internet functions, but what about retired people who aren't so good - impossible for them!

New MFA login is a joke!
Passwords rejected even after reset, several attempts needed.
Once onto PIN entry page, the 'number' boxes jump around at random.
Eventually reaching QR display, which frequently fails to scan with error message.
Several hours later after finally capturing QR, MFA codes fail, not accepted or 'expired'.
Many fruitless hours wasted.
Even had to ask husband for help. Still no joy.
Truly awful experience. TPS staff used to be helpful and friendly.

I’m applying on behalf of my father for my mother’s pension rights to be transferred to him. I applied on line, which is not straightforward, only then to receive a letter instructing me that a paper submission must be made. Aggravating in this on line world. But then I tried to ring the support line for information to help complete the form. The automated response told me all about when the service wasn’t available because of training, all the reasons why I shouldn’t be abusive to staff, which they managed to make sound like a threat, what services were available on line, which is totally initially ironic…. And on calling I was told I was 53rd, (!!!!) in the queue, andI shouldn’t be unhappy because other member calls were being answered, so clearly I have no right to complain, but …. my call was important to them. This experience does not deserve the title of ’service’. It’s your very definition of lipstick on a pig.

There needs to be a zero star option for this shower. I decided to apply for my pension as I specifically wanted to take advantage of the tax free lump sum to which I was entitled (though this is not 'automatic'). I have stated throughout the process that this was what I wanted. Apparently because I ticked the incorrect box on an online form - which was not written in plain English and was - I feel - deliberately confusing - I now cannot have my lump sum because I have made an irrevocable decision! Except that was never the decision - I will be appealing and I will if necessary go all the way to court on this one. Suspect they just want to hang on to as much of our money as possible for as long as possible. Would love to know if I am alone in this particular experience because I am not an unintelligent human but they managed to scam me.

I am having to wait weeks before I even hear from the Pensions Ombudsman, and it is still a total unknown if they are going to get my money retained / stolen by Teachers' Pensions, which by now will amount to £15,000 (covering September 2025 to October 2026 inclusive). I cannot wait another four weeks.
I used to think they were just dragging their feet; but now I see they are digging their heels in. I used to think they were just incompetent; but now I see they are intransigent.
My liquid assets in my UK and French banks combined are £10k. Teachers' Pensions have retained—stolen—ONE AND ONE HALF TIMES or 150% of that. I want my money NOW, and an explanation. Why, and by what right, have they done this? Do they think I've been dead for a year since September 2025 and my identity has been stolen by a bunch of crooks working out of Istanbul or Ulaanbaatar?
The good news for Teachers' Pensions is that as Lewis Carroll could have said of me, "You are old..." and they won't have to pay out for me very much longer. But they must remember they are not philanthropists, they are not paying from their own pockets, they are not paying out of the kindness of their hearts. They are paying back to me the money I earned during my teaching career, held back from my salary at the time and kept in trust until the day I needed it, until I retired. That was fourteen years ago, so not long to go now, chaps. You are paying me MY money, and you are paying because it is your job, it is your duty, it is your legal obligation for as long as we are both on the planet.

I can only speak as a POA (power of attourney) for my father, who has dementia and is entitled to a small Teacher's Pension after his wife died. Many organisations have inadequate proceses for handling POAs, however Teachers' Pensions stands alone for their sheer ineptitude at every level. The various strands of their support - the web process, the customer service phone support and the written support direct from the Darlington team are all poor in their own right, compounded by the fact that the various strands do not seem to communicate with each other. It took me over a year dealing with this organisation before my father's pension was paid, and I think that was more luck - I happened to come across one individual who stood out as competent in a sea of inadequecy - than design. What drives me to write this review is my recent experience. I have just attempted to complete the annual review process that requires my father (i.e. me) to confirm that his circumstances have not changed. Although the letter stated that, to make the process 'as simple as possible' I should call the customer service line, this proved anything but. After an hour wait (from position 31 in the queue) I was connected with a lady with poor english language skills. She did not recognise the reference number I was given on the letter, did not recognise that I was the POA not my father, could not comprehend that the correspondence address for the claim - my address - was different from my father's address. She asked me for my DOB as part of the security process. I explained that my DOB was not on their system and gave her my father's. She insisted that she needed mine, and when I provided it she informed me that I had failed the security questions. Do Teachers' Pensions ever stress-test or cold call their own service? I pity those of you that are relying on this organistion as your primary source of income, you are emtering a world of pain!

There needs to be an option to award a negative star for Teachers Pension. What an absolute shambles, I have had no access to my pension online sine June 2026 and having spent hours waiting on calls to be supported, (I use that word sarcastically) I can still not log on.
Write in they said, having written lengthy letters and complaints, nothing is acknowledged or recified.
And they blame BT internet for the rationale for not sending codes anymore to log into your account.
Not everyone has an authenticator app or wants one!
In a few weeks the new company managing teachers pensions kicks in, IF YOU COULD login, you wont be able to for a week or so while it changes over, so goodness knows what will happen with the new company? Isnt TATA who saw M&S into the security breach by the way?
No statements, no P60, no tax code change notifications for me for the foreseeable.
Oh and like many of you on here, also received correspondence notifying me to log onto my profile to be able to read the letter, hahahaha it really is a joke.

The two-factor authentication doesn't work. It requires an authenticator app and the QR code needed to operate this cannot be read by the app. Long, long wait on the phone to deal with this.

This is unbelievably bad. I sent several messages with no reply, the last one in June 1025. Justgot a reply, September 16 2026. After navigating new 'improved' log in i was told to select 'social media' and send a new message!!!!!

I supposedly retired on the 16th August. I received my statement of benefits on the 4th August, which missed out a significant part of my pension in the calculation. I called them on the 5th, asking for it to be resolved. I was told it would be resolved by the time I was paid my first pension payment on the 15th September. On the 16th August, no sign of the lump sum promised in the benefit statement. Innumerable calls and a month later, I am no closer to getting this paid, and am at risk of losing the housing we are purchasing for our retirement. Oh, and no monthly pension payment either. When you call, and EVENTUALLY get hold of someone (my average wait is 45 minutes), they are utterly powerless to resolve anything. The only thing they can offer is to 'escalate it' to management, who will apparently pick it up within 24-48 hours. Several of these deadlines have now passed, and no sign that there is anyone left in the building - no communication, no resolution, nothing. It is absolutely no wonder they have been sacked. However, I also wonder if the new company, Tata, will be any better. In the meantime, I do not hold out any hope that the issues will be resolved during the changeover, which is approaching rapidly. Like many others, I am panicking about the financial fallout because of their catastrophic ineptitude.

Appalling service. A long winded convoluted menu which took five minutes to get through finally told me that I was 24th in the queue. This is totally unacceptable. There is no email address for complaints. I wonder why?!
I was told that I had to download an app to access my portal as they don't have my mobile number. They do have my mobile number and the website provided no way for me to input it again. I don't want the app and should not be forced to have it.
The whole system is very customer unfriendly, unnecessarily complicated and difficult to use and you can see from the Trust Pilot website the revies are rock bottom and they don't even get the courtesy of a response. The CEO of Teachers' Pensions should be ashamed to provide such poor service but is probably on a six figure salary

HORRIBLE TIME WASTE NO CONTACT
Like novice bots are running the service. I correctly entered the password and PIN, but for more than a year could not log in. Requested the password, and they sent a link, which is not reachable. Their Contact Us page is useless and riddiculs time waste. They need a teacher to teach 'em the ABCs of services!

Some of the worst customer service I have experienced Amina (or ameena) was my mum’s call handler this morning

I work in customer Service answering calls myself with a good 10 years experience so I would like to think I have some sort of knowledge on what to expect

The agent spent the whole call talking over my mum and when they were paying attention (briefly) spent the rest of the conversation talking about the wrong thing entirely

Mum has had several conversations with teacher’s pensions about a very specific issue and every agent was helpful regrettably however this agent has left mum feeling gaslit and unsupported

Very bad customer service - do better!!

If I could give zero stars I certainly would. In my opinion the most difficult and unprofessional organisation I have ever had to deal with.

Appalling service from Teachers' Pensions

I have been trying to resolve an issue with my pension for three months, during which I have made six separate phone calls. On every occasion, I have been told essentially the same thing: “I’ll send a message to the backroom staff.”

The situation is particularly serious because I am receiving the wrong amount of pension and the wrong lump sum. This isn't a minor administrative query — it directly affects my financial security and retirement.

I have also specifically requested that the matter be escalated to a manager and expedited. Despite this, I have now been waiting over six weeks for a response.

Quite frankly, this is an unacceptable way to operate a pension service. People have spent decades paying into their pensions and should be able to expect an accurate, responsive and professional service when they finally retire.

If Teachers' Pensions cannot provide that level of service with its existing systems and staffing, then serious questions need to be asked about whether those systems and processes should continue in their current form.

If you are planning to retire soon, be warned. Don't give this outfit permission to ruin what should be one of the happiest and most important milestones of your life — your retirement and retirement celebration.

Three months, six phone calls, the wrong pension, the wrong lump sum, and six weeks waiting for a manager to respond. Simply not good enough.

Multiple failings. Terrible Website, wrong information given by staff, pot luck on experience of staff, no replies to written communication, phone calls take average of 1 hour.

My Divorce final order granted in March 2026. I have phoned consistently twice a week since then, trying to solve the matter.
I have been sent incorrect forms, been asked for impertinent information, been given conflicting information multiple times, and am still no closer to adhering to the pension sharing order. There are no replies to written communications so only recourse is by phone. Each call takes n average 45 minutes to an hour.
Final straw has been told (only last week after 6 months of constant haranguing) that there is an embargo on invoicing, so TPS won’t enact the pension sharing order. There is no end date on this embargo I have been told so therefore to ‘call back every few weeks’, despite each call taking one hour on average.

Appalling service
Contacted teachers pension online via email and the on the site it says response will be in 10 days. However 16 after my contract I’m still waiting. I contacted them by phone and asked the same two questions. I was told that they are sending an email for someone to contact me and they will do so within 10 days. That makes it 26 days, almost one month and that is if they were to contact me at all. This is appalling service. Completely useless. I can’t understand why they are allowed to continue and get away with their poor service to the customers. They need to be regulated and sacked if no improvements. This is people’s lives here.

For the last 6 months I have been trying to get access to my Teachers Pension (TP) portal via writing to TP on two occasions and also ringing at least 3 times. The wait times have always been appalling. I have had no reply to the specific issues I have raised in my letters to Alyson Collingwood, Head of Operations. The last time I rang was on Friday 4 Sept 2026 and was on the phone for 50 mins before I spoke to a human being. I was told to access the multi-factor authentification, which I tried to set up but had a nightmare as various apps were charging me from £1.99 to £14.99. Why has it been so terribly frustrating to access my TP account? I regret taking out a pension with TP from 1995 to 2008 and now I can not get access to information on my pension.

For a professional body, this website is a total disgrace. It's impossible to login. Even when I reset my log in details and try the new password, pin etc it still won't let me in. I end up in a loop going backwards and forwards from password to pin. So frustrating. Words can't describe it. The people who run this scheme should be sacked.

Teachers Pensions have 'improved' security log in - so much so I can't log in anymore - now using MFA and authenticator - get message MFA passcode expired whatever codes I use - phoned - got cut off after 15 minutes - rang back - 20th in queue - now been waiting half an hour - also has to complain regarding transitional protection which after two years is still unavailable