Backpay Explained
In Police Pay Awards
When a pay award is announced late, officers receive backpay.
The gross figure looks significant,
but the net result often causes
confusion due to tax and pension timing.
Backpay Key Points
- Pay awards are often effective from September but implemented months later.
- The difference is paid as a lump sum in a single pay period.
- Standard tax and pension deductions apply to the total amount.
- Deductions may appear disproportionately high due to timing.
Backpay is standard salary paid retrospectively, not a bonus.
When a police pay award is announced late, officers receive backpay. The gross figure on your payslip can look significant, but the net figure often causes confusion and frustration among the workforce.
This guide explains why backpay happens, how it is calculated, and why taxation often appears higher than expected in the month it is paid. Professional, independent, and based on standard payroll logic.
Why Backpay Happens
The Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) process is often subject to political and administrative delays. Even though the "pay year" for police starts on 1st September, the final agreement may not be reached until later in the autumn.
Forces then require time to update their payroll systems. If an agreement is implemented in December, the officer is owed the difference for September, October, and November. This cumulative difference is "Backpay."
The Standard Implementation Timeline
Award legally applies from this point.
PRRB report and Govt decision finalized.
Difference paid in one single payslip.
How It's Calculated
Minus Old Monthly Pay
× Total Unpaid Months
Tax & National Insurance
Because backpay is paid as a single lump sum, payroll systems treat it as income earned in that specific month.
The Marginal Rate Spike
If the backpay pushes your monthly earnings into the 40% bracket, you keep only 60% of that lump sum before NI and Pension. This is the main reason net backpay feels "lower" than expected.
Yearly Reconciliation
Income tax is an annual calculation. If you overpay in the "backpay month," HMRC will typically adjust your tax code or reconcile it at year-end, meaning you do eventually receive the full value.
Backpay is Delayed Salary, NOT a bonus.
It follows standard PAYE physics.
Pension Contributions
Backpay is pensionable earnings. Pension contributions are deducted from the lump sum at your applicable percentage rate (e.g., 12.44% or 13.44%).
While this reduces your immediate take-home gain, it increases your total pensionable earnings for the year, which increases your CARE pension accrual for the rest of your life.
Accrual Multiplier
Every £100 of gross backpay adds to your "pensionable pay" block for that year. In the 2015 scheme, you earn 1/55.3th of that block as an annual pension for life.
Frequently Asked Questions
• Is police backpay a bonus?
No. Backpay is delayed salary. It is the money owed to you because a pay award was implemented several months after its effective date (usually 1st September).
• Why is NI high on backpay?
National Insurance is calculated based on the pay period in which the money is paid. Because backpay is usually a lump sum, it can significantly increase your earnings for that specific month, leading to higher NI deductions than usual.
• Does backpay affect pension?
Yes. Backpay is pensionable earnings. Pension contributions will be deducted from the lump sum at your applicable percentage rate, which in turn increases your pension accrual for that year under the CARE scheme.
• Is London weighting backdated?
If the national pay award includes an increase to London Weighting or other regional allowances (like the South East Allowance), then those increases are typically backdated to the effective date of the award.
• Can I dispute my backpay calculation?
Yes. If your backpay doesn't align with your service record or overtime worked during the backdated period, you should query the breakdown with your force payroll department.
• Is backpay payment automatic?
In most forces, yes. Once the pay award is agreed and the payroll system updated, the backpay is calculated and paid automatically in the next available pay cycle.