Firefighter Active member Newsletter - 19 August 2026
Welcome to the latest edition of the SPPA’s member newsletter. In this edition we share information about your pension benefits and updates on the 2015 Remedy and Matthews second option exercise.
Your 2026 Annual Benefit Statement
Annual Benefit Statements (ABS) for most members who are paying into their pension scheme will be available to view on Engage from Monday 31 August.
An ABS provides an estimate of your pension benefits up to 31 March 2026.
The estimate is based on information which is provided to us by your employer.
Visit our website to sign in or register on Engage.
Injury or Ill health retirement
Injury benefits
As a Firefighter in Scotland, you are covered by the Firefighters' Compensation Scheme (Scotland). If you sustain a serious long-term injury while working as a firefighter, you could receive:
- an injury pension
- a lump-sum injury gratuity
The compensation scheme provides a ‘minimum income guarantee’ which grants you a percentage of your average pensionable pay during your time as a firefighter.
Eligibility for the compensation scheme and the amount payable is subject to an assessment from an Independent Qualified Medical Practitioner.
Ill health benefits
As a member of the Firefighter’s pension scheme, you are also entitled to an ill health pension if you become too ill to work. There are two types of ill health retirement.
Lower tier
A lower tier pension is paid if you’re permanently unable to work as a firefighter but can take on other work.
The amount you receive is based on the benefits you built up in the scheme prior to applying for ill health retirement.
Higher tier
A higher tier pension is paid if you have at least five years' qualifying service and you are unable to undertake any employment.
The amount you receive may be increased by an amount equal to the pension you might have built up had you been able to continue working, plus a further 2%.
If you leave the fire service because of ill health, you do not automatically qualify for pension payments.
2015 Remedy
2026 ABS-RSS delivery
Work is underway to prepare Annual Benefit Statements (ABS). If you are eligible for the 2015 Remedy, you will get an ABS combined with a Remediable Service Statement (ABS-RSS). We intend to issue these by 31 August 2026. Building on the progress we made last year, most eligible members have now received a statement. However, despite our best intentions, some members are still waiting to receive one.
We are sorry for this and understand how frustrating it must be. We are continuing to identify solutions to enable us to provide statements where additional member circumstances make the calculations more complex.
You can find out more by visiting our website and the information about Annual Benefit Statements. If you are within six months of retirement, you can request an estimate.
Contribution adjustment recalculation for tax due to additional income
Tax relief on your Remedy contributions adjustment is calculated using the marginal rate of income tax applicable to each Remedy year in which you contributed, together with the standard personal allowance at the time.
If you received additional income in any of these years that led to you paying a higher rate of tax, you may request a recalculation. You can do this by contacting us via Engage, our online member portal.
When we receive your request, we will ask you to provide evidence, such as yearly tax returns and P60s for the affected Remedy years, so please make sure to have this available. When we have the supporting evidence, it will normally take a further 7-10 days to complete the recalculation.
If you have yet to make a repayment decision, we will send you an updated ABS-RSS. If you have already repaid your adjustment, then any over payments will be returned to you.
Matthews second option
Following successful testing, SPPA have now started issuing information packs to eligible firefighters and this will continue in batches until completion.
The information pack will contain:
- a cover letter which explains the process and what you need to do
- guidance that provides additional information about this exercise
- a statement which outlines your purchasable service, the cost of buying back this service and the payment methods available
- an election form for you to complete and return
We apologise for the delay and thank you for your continued patience.
Find out more about the Matthews second option exercise on our website.
Keeping your information up to date
Have you moved house or updated your details recently? You can login to Engage, our online pension portal to:
- view your pension documents
- update your personal details
Planning to retire soon?
Engage sends an email to verify your identity when you login.
If you registered for Engage using your work email, make sure to update this to a personal email before your final working day.
Changing to a personal email address means you can access your account after you retire.
To update your email address:
- login to your Engage account and select ‘Go to details and settings’
- select ‘Manage my personal details' and navigate to the login email section
- select ‘Change email’ and enter your personal email address
- select ‘Save Changes’
- check your inbox for a one-time passcode, type it into Engage and click ‘Submit’
Help us improve our services
Have you contacted us recently? We would like to hear about your experience.
Your feedback will help us understand how well our services are meeting your needs and identify areas for improvement.
If you would like to share your experience, please complete our short survey.
As part of the survey, you will also have the option to register your interest in taking part in future user research. If you choose to sign up, we will keep your details secure and may invite you to participate in activities such as workshops, interviews, or testing of new services and forms.
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