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HOUSE ABOUT THAT
I’m a boomer with a £760k mortgage-free house & a £2.2k a month pension – but I’ll take my OAP freebies, I deserve them
Peter has some sharp words to say to younger generations.
ENJOYING a three-course meal at a posh restaurant, retired engineer Peter Ward, 76 and his wife, retired admin manager, Jane, 74, take a deep breath and relax.
The couple, from Aylesbury, Bucks., have had a busy day sightseeing, shopping and exploring London as part of a weekend treat.
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It’s a mini splurge for the OAP pair and it’s all free courtesy of the taxpayer.
The retired grandparents have saved up their £300 pensioner cost of living payment - which they freely admit they don’t need but love anyway.
It’s given to OAPs to help ease the squeeze during the ongoing cost of living crisis as pensioners are often disproportionately affected by price hikes.
For many households it provides much needed relief. But Peter doesn’t need it.
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Him and Jane own a four-bed house worth £760k and have a combined £2.2k a month private final salary. It’s made up of two third private pensions and one third state pension.
It allows them a life many people can only dream of in retirement but one they saved hard for.
“Even so I’ll take any freebie offered to pensioners,” he says. “It's free money. We’re entitled to it. We might use it to go out for a nice steak dinner, posh Chinese or to buy nice gifts for the grandkids or each other.
“I won't feel guilty about doing it.” He adds he’d be “mad to refuse it.”
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“I won’t be criticised for treating myself or my family and using the government cash for things it wasn’t ‘intended’ for,” he says.
“We’ve earned it. I worked four jobs. I’d have my full time job as an engineer and then rent out vintage cars for weddings, import cars, do character acting and sell second cars. We both worked our socks off.
“I happily worked jobs because I wanted to have a private pension and to afford to retire.That’s what the government encouraged us to do back then.
And he controversially believes he’s worked harder than “many people today”.
“We’ve worked harder than many people do today,” Peter, dad-of-two and grandad-of-two, says. “Pensioners like me can get up to £6,400 in free cash. We’d be mad to refuse it.
“I am sick of ‘spending police’’ trying to dictate if we can use the money for a treat, day out or a holiday.
What are pensioners entitled to?
Millions of pensioners have the right to nab free cash, discounts and freebies worth up to £6,400.
Pensioners who have reached state pension age can grab the freebies offered under various schemes from companies and the government.
This includes Pension Credit which allows cash-tight retirees get help towards their food and energy bills The average pension credit award is worth over £3,500 a year .
Pensioners don't have to pay National Insurance even if they are working or doing part-time jobs.
Retirees can get extra cash to help with energy bills worth up to £600.
Anyone getting the state pension can get the winter fuel payment.
Pensioners also get the one-off cost of living payment of £300 last year, free prescriptions, free NHS eye tests.
They get free bus passes (and tube plus some train travel if you’re in a London borough).
Pensioners with a Senior Railcard get discounted rail fares.
People aged over 60 can get discounted days out and cinema tickets.
If you're an existing National Trust member aged 60 or over, and you've been a member for at least the last three years, you can ask for 25% off your subscription.
Supermarkets also offer pensioner deals like Asda where pensioners pay £1 for a soup roll and as much tea or coffee as they can drink in the cafe.
Holiday companies also offer pensioner discounts, as do restaurants and zoos.
“I pay my taxes so I will take what I deserve.
“People like to think we should not get the freebies or discounts offered to pensioners. I love a good freebie.
“I am proud I paid my taxes. I was happy working four jobs.
“I’m standing up for pensioners. It doesn’t matter if you have a lot or a little. If you qualify for the freebies, you deserve them. It’s basic respect.
“We’re proud of how hard we worked. We have earned the right for a bit of free cash - every pensioner does.
“Our £300 cost of living payment goes into our savings. If we use it for a weekend away, a meal splurge or use it for the gas bill it doesn't matter.
I pay my taxes - I will take what I deserve.
Peter Ward
“If I want to use it to buy groceries or pay for my Mrs to have her hair cut and nails done instead I will. No one can tell me what to do with my free money.”
Peter started work at 16 in 1963 as an apprentice mechanic while Jane started work a year later, also aged 16, as a care assistant.
“We both worked hard,” he says. “I became an engineer and we planned for retirement. As baby boomers we were told to not rely on the government, to save and to be independent.
“My generation was the first to be offered the chance to pay into a private pension plan. When I started working as an engineer for an oil company based in Heathrow at 30, I started it.”
Peter’s employer paid into the pension and the now OAP scrimped and saved to top it up as regularly as possible.
“As baby boomers we worked long hours and saved to be able to afford to retire,” he says. “We had the work ethic needed to do that.
“There were some years I had four different jobs or side hustles as well as a fulltime job. I never complained. I was happy to provide for my family.
I know trolls think anyone who has a private pension should not be entitled to discounts and free cash.
Peter Ward
Peter’s part-time jobs included hiring out vintage cars, acting and extra modelling work which he still does, importing vintage cars and working on car rallies.
The basic state pension is £879 pounds a month. Peter says this and the private pension he receives is what makes his life comfortable in retirement.
“I wanted to ensure my private pension offered us a buffer,” he says.
“We know we are luckier than some pensioners. The cost-of-living crisis is hitting everyone.
“I know trolls think anyone who has a private pension should not be entitled to discounts and free cash. They’re wrong and should be ashamed.
Peter’s hard work meant the couple could retire at 55 in 2004 after 40 years in the workforce.
Whenever I look at social media, I am shocked at how much people spend and throw away.
Peter Ward
“We are very careful with our money,” he says. “We budget and never overspend. Whenever I look at social media, I am shocked at how much people spend and throw away. I see influencers and think are they actually working?
“I still love doing part-time acting jobs to bring in some extra money. The work ethic is in my veins.
“Even so, I will nab a pensioner discount whenever I can. If there is pensioner parking offered, or pensioner discounts at the theatre or movie I will make sure we get our free money.
“Just because we are able to pay full price doesn't mean we should.
“I never complained about how my taxes have been used to fund people who don’t want to work or don't work. Now those people want to tell me I am not entitled to a freebie. I won't have hard working retirees criticised.”
The freebies we get are a thank you.
Peter Ward
Peter who gets prescriptions and eye check ups free and other OAP offers, and takes advantage of it all, says: “The freebies we get are a thank you.
“People forget as a pensioner with savings we still have to pay tax. We don’t stop paying tax on our savings ever.
“I know we are never going to stop being taxed so our free money is going to be used for whatever we want.
“I still do my bit helping out local charities and doing DIY for pensioners I know who can't afford tradesmen. It’s what our generation was taught.
“I love my free money. We deserve it and we refuse to be told how to spend it.
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“This OAP grey rinse grafter is standing up for all the other baby boomers who worked hard and saved.
This OAP grey rinse grafter is standing up for all the other baby boomers who worked hard and saved.
Peter Ward
“I tell trolls my taxes are likely paying for your benefits so jog on. I deserve a thank you, not a thump of criticism.”
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