What happens to a deferred pension if I die before I retire?

It's rare to get a death benefit once you are a deferred member of a scheme, although this life assurance sometimes lasts for a short period after you have left or you may be able to extend the policy by paying for it. This might be sensible if it comes at a cheap rate or without any further medical checks.

Your spouse will probably get at least some pension from when you would have been due to retire, and if the scheme was contracted out they will have to get the legal minimum guaranteed by the contracting out rules. The commonest spouse's pension in these circumstances is half of what you would have got.

There's more about this at this section of the OPAS website.