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Marys1953 Asked October 9, 2024

Am I eligible to claim my dead ex's GM pension if he never remarried and I am remarried?

JoAnn29 Oct 26, 2024
The OP has not been back. Its been over 2 weeks since I gave her the GM info she needed to find out if she qualifies or not. For GM, if no beneficiary set up at retirement, pension dies with you. A court order when divorcing is another thing. This OP doesn't seemed to have asked for that.

KrisZini01 Oct 25, 2024
GM absolutely recognizes a QDRO. What he had accrued during the marriage the divorcing spouse may lay claim to through a Qualified Domestic Relations Order. That portion only.

At death if no survivor named it goes to his estate less any reserve held back to satisfy the QDRO amount which is then probated by his will. If survivor named...this below is moot.

Absent a will called Intestate...its order of succession.
1. Spouse
If children prior marriage then
2. Spouse 50% Prior Children 50% (not their mother his former spouse) as heirs. Its assumed the Spouse will pass to their children but not required.

No Spouse
Children 100%
No Children
Parents
Parents deceased
Siblings
No siblings living
Their children
No siblings period
Back up to parents Siblings and their descendents...

A former spouse is not an heir. Will receive nothing. Will not be notified by probate.

Had her name remained as the survivor...they will pay his estate. They are notified like insurance companies by Social Security death roll every 3 months.

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KrisZini01 Oct 25, 2024
You needed to do a QDRO at the time of Divorce.

The Pension has to follow the POD Beneficiary or QDRO stipulations.

So No. .you probably dont get any pension rights if that wasnt on record when you divorced...not when they died.

CaringWifeAZ Oct 16, 2024
What kind of question is that?
I felt like this was a forum to support others who are going through difficulty with a loved one's health issues.
You are asking if you can get money from your dead ex? And you're married to someone else? You could look to your current spouse to support you.
At least pose your question to the appropriate source. For instance, just call GM's HR department and ask. How do any of us know if you can get your dead ex's pension?
JoAnn29 Oct 16, 2024
GM HR will refer her to the UAW because they manage the Trust.
Onlychild2024 Oct 15, 2024
If you both moved on with your lives with new partners, that doesn't make sense. Wouldn't your ex have his new spouse as his beneficiary?
JoAnn29 Oct 16, 2024
He never remarried.
JoAnn29 Oct 15, 2024
All car manufactures have the UAW as a Union. Its what Contract your under when u retire to what your entitled to. The higher ups are not Union so different pension set up. Line workers, supervisors and skilled labor are Union.

If friend of SWMCs was married at time of her husbands death and received a % of his pension it was because he set it up that way when he retired. It has to be done at timevof retirement.

When OP divorced her ex, it was then that her decree should have said she would recieve a % of exs pension upon retirement. As I said before, she had to be set up as his beneficiary and there is certain criteria for that. If he had no beneficiary, he got full pension. When he died, so did his pension.

The only way OP is going to resolve this is to call UAW benefits which I gave the number for. Once retired your pension and benefits are under the UAW Trust.
Patrick201398 Oct 17, 2024
As a GM retiree I can speak with experience. My GM pension is administered through Fidelity Investments, not the UAW trust. The UAW Trust covers our benefits such as medical, vision and dental. When I retired I had to agree to have $100/month deducted to be sure that my spouse would receive 50% of my pension should I die before her. If I were to have divorced she is not entitled to any pension or benefits. FYI... last I knew no GM salary personnel are UAW represented.

Hope that clears it up.
Llamalover47 Oct 15, 2024
Marys1953: It's best to pose your question to GM.
JoAnn29 Oct 15, 2024
No, GM cannot help her. The UAW Trust handles retirees pensions and benefits.
swmckeown76 Oct 15, 2024
I have a friend whose deceased husband worked at GM. She gets his pension, but will lose it if she remarries. Perhaps it depends on whether the original pension recipient was represented by a union (he was) or not, and when he retired. Definitely call GM directly to be sure.

lkdrymom Oct 9, 2024
I would assume only if you were named beneficiary.
JoAnn29 Oct 10, 2024
Yes, you need to determine a beneficiary at time of retirement. That beneficiary has to fit certain criteria too.
JoAnn29 Oct 9, 2024
Good question. My DH is a retired GM employee. The problem I see is when he retired, did he pick a beneficiary? They are called survivor benefits. If not, you are not entitled. At time of retirement is when he picks a survior. He receives more by not picking a survivor, less if he does. Here's the number I have in my husbands retirement package from 2009.

GM Benefits & Service Center
PO Box 780003
Cincinnati, OH. 45277-0066
1-800-489-4646
https//qdro.fidelity.com

anonymous1784938 Oct 9, 2024
Definitely call and find out for sure.

I don’t think you are a surviving eligible dependent, since you aren’t his widow.

But call to be sure so that you don’t leave money on the table.

AlvaDeer Oct 9, 2024
Time for a call to gm, I think.

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