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You are in: Home Page | About Thompsons | Everyday Law | Default Retirement Age to be scrapped?

December 2009

Default Retirement Age to be scrapped?

In a case commonly know as “Heyday” the High Court has recently ruled that the Default Retirement Age (DRA) of 65 contained in the Age Discrimination Regulations (2006) was not unlawful. However the Court made it clear that if the Age Regulations had been adopted for the first time in 2009 and not 2006 and had the Government not given an indication of an imminent review, it would have concluded that age 65 was not lawful. The Judge commented “I cannot presently see how 65 could remain as a DRA after the review”.

For the last few years, the DRA has meant that employers can force their staff to retire at the age of 65 even if they are perfectly able and willing to carry on working.

The DRA was reviewed by the European Court of Justice earlier this year and it was ruled that the High Court would have to decide whether or not the DRA was actually justified and therefore lawful.

The High Court has now said that although the intention of the DRA was good in that it was trying to protect the integrity of the labour market, setting the age at 65 might have been too low.

If an age over 65 was used it would help to avoid age discrimination and break the link between pension age and retirement age.

Now that the Government has brought forward its review of the retirement age to 2010 it is likely that the retirement age of 65 will only be with us for a short time longer.

Thompsons Solicitors will keep you updated with any developments relating to the Default Retirement Age.

Thompsons Solicitors is the most experienced personal injury firm in the UK. So if you are injured and your accident is costing you money, claim compensation and call 08000 224 224 or Claim Now