Will King, our Head of Business Development was featured on FTAdviser this week, giving his thoughts on our DB process and how the business has grown since the regulator introduced a ban on contingent charging.
Category: Pensions
Retiring Abroad? Your State Pension could be affected
The UK state pension income is able to be claimed by anyone who has a minimum of 10 years of National Insurance contributions and has reached the state pension age. This also applies to anyone who has retired abroad, but there are some changes that may affect this.
To claim the state pension abroad, you must be within 4 months of reaching the state pension age and also have between 10-35 years’ worth of National Insurance contributions before you can apply.
In order to claim the pension, you must contact the International Pension Centre (IPC) and complete an International Claim form.
Will my Final Salary pension be affected by COVID-19?
The recent coronavirus epidemic has many people wondering how it will impact their final salary (also known as Defined Benefit) pension. Provided your former/current employer manages to stay in business – your pension should be safe*, which is great news.
Public sector schemes, such as those for teachers, nurses or civil servants are also protected because most are funded by taxation. Because of this, they remain unaffected by movements in the stock market or companies going bust.
On the other hand, if you work in the private sector then your Final Salary pension is backed by a fund purposely allocated to pay your pension, along with your colleagues. That fund is controlled by a group of trustees who make decisions such as how best to invest it, along with how it should be managed.
Do I need a pension adviser to transfer my pension?
You might have arranged a loan, set up a mortgage, or even set up your own business without any help from a financial adviser. It’s tempting to take that approach to pensions – after all, retirement planning is a personal decision. However, for many people, using the services of a pension adviser can be not only helpful in a pension transfer, but also save money.
Shop around before you drawdown: your current pension provider might not be your best option.
Once you approach retirement age, a key decision to make is how to make use of your pension income drawdown. However, your current pension provider may not be offering you the best drawdown deal – and this could be costing you money. Here are three key questions to consider, to help you decide whether your current pension provider is best for you.
New Job? Exciting times – but don’t leave your old pension behind!
Getting a new job is great news but comes with its share of challenges. It may involve a new role, a different commute, or even a total relocation. On top of this, there are also things to organise with your old workplace, like a handover meeting. But have you thought about what’s going to happen to your old workplace personal pension? Amongst all the excitement of changing jobs, it’s important not to lose track of your old workplace pension. Here are three areas you should check:
Want to make managing your pension funds easier? Here are 5 tips to follow
It’s often difficult to keep track of multiple pensions – not only does this stop you from knowing how much your pension pot is worth, but it makes retirement planning more difficult. Here are some tips to make life easier:
1. Consolidate your pensions into one fund
Our article a guide to pension consolidation explains the many benefits of merging multiple pensions. As well as ensuring you get the best potential return on your investment, pension consolidation also helps you to avoid hidden charges from your pension provider, that might be losing you money. For the purposes of retirement planning, however, a key benefit of pension consolidation is easier pension management.
Should I buy an annuity? Or is income drawdown the future?
Thanks to pension freedoms, there is now more flexibility than ever over how you are going to take your pension. Pension drawdown has become particularly popular in recent years, but there are still advantages to the more traditional pension annuity.
What are the differences between drawdown and annuity
Income drawdown is the newest option. Your defined contribution pension acts like any other investment as you pay into your private pension and – hopefully – see your investment grow. When you retire, you can withdraw money as and when you need it. The rest of it stays invested in your pension pot to potentially keep growing. A pension annuity, however, allows you to guarantee a regular income for the rest of your life or for a set period of time. The income is always there, and in most cases, you cannot change or cancel if you change your mind.
Five New Year Tax Resolutions you could make
The end of the financial year isn’t just a date for business owners or people in finance. It’s a great time for you to take stock of your finances and give them a thorough spring clean in preparation for the year ahead. Here are our five resolutions you could make:
5 New Year tax resolutions you could make for retirement planning
As the new tax year approaches, now is a perfect time to think about making your finances work for you, especially when it comes to planning your retirement. The concept of the financial year isn’t just limited to accountants or financial advisers. It affects us all, as savings such as ISAs and personal pensions have limits on how much you can invest per year. Other deadlines also depend on this calendar – which is why this is the busiest time of year, as many tax breaks cannot be carried forward to future years.
