‘I felt like I’d been scammed’: woman describes chaos of state pension age changes

‘I’d never been hard-up before but now I had to think twice before even buying a book, clothes or a meal out,’ says Hilary Simpson. Photograph: John Simpson

Hilary Simpson was happy in 2009, when she was 55, to take early retirement from her job in local government. She wanted to help her daughter get on in her career by taking on childcare responsibilities of her granddaughter. And, after 30 years of hard work, she wanted to relax.

“It was an attractive offer we were given,” she says. “A lump sum and then a reduced pension. I assumed – because I had no evidence to the contrary – that I’d be getting my pension at 60. I drew up a spreadsheet for how to make the lump sum last five years, then signed on the dotted line.”