Regulation 9 Right to opt out
No provision of these regulations shall apply to any person to whom at any time before 1st April 1983 any benefit (including a return of contributions and any pension payable to a widow or any dependant by virtue of a surrender) was or is being paid or became or may become payable if—
he is placed by that provision in a worse position than he would have been if it had not applied in relation to that benefit; and
that provision relates to a benefit paid or payable in respect of a person who—
ceased before 1st April 1983 to hold an employment in respect of which he was a pensionable employee, or
died before that date while still in such an employment; and
the first mentioned person, by notice in writing given to the National Water Council within 6 months after 1st April 1983, elects that that provision shall not apply to him.