Pensions | Finance
UK heading for pensions Dark Age, says AXA
State pension provision in the UK lags behind its G7 counterparts and needs to be reformed in order to avoid today's workers living in ‘pensioner poverty', research from AXA reveals.
Government urged to act on pensioner tax overpayments
Commenting on today's National Audit Office report which estimates that 1.5 million pensioners are paying more tax than they need to, John Andrews, Chairman of the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, said: "This damning report sadly comes as no surprise. The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group has written three reports over the last 12 years identifying these problems and their causes. In that time HMRC have only paid lip service to correcting the fundamental faults in their service strategy.
Personal Finance Society partners with Beat the Pensions Crisis
The Personal Finance Society (PFS) has announced its partnership with Beat the Pensions Crisis, a new enterprise that empowers consumers to improve their retirement finances through clear guidance and practical actions.
LV= improves Flexible Transitions Account offering
Leading retirement solutions provider LV= has improved its Flexible Transitions Account with a new wrapper charge, making the product more competitive.
Zurich highlights key retirement planning issues
With industry experts predicting the ‘at retirement' market is set to increase by sixty per cent in the next five years and falling investment markets affecting accumulated pensions savings, the need for retirement planning has never been greater.
British pensioners feeling the pinch home and abroad
As the effect of Sterling on the UK economy is debated, it's not just Brits living at home who are feeling the ongoing effects of a weak pound. British pensioners living in Europe have potentially lost out on almost €5.5 billion of their income in the last two years due to the falling strength of Sterling according to HIFX, the foreign exchange specialists. As well as wild currency fluctuations, pensioners are also exposing themselves to over £300 a year in bank charges just to transfer their income abroad.
Calls for better pension incentives and flexible savings for women
At the launch of its fifth annual Women and Pensions Report, Scottish Widows called on the Government to introduce better pension incentives to encourage women to save. The report has revealed that women are still falling far short of men when it comes to pensions savings. Just 47% of women who could and should be saving for retirement are saving adequately compared to 59% of men (gender gap has increased by 3% since 2008).
Volkswagen and RNLI receive Pension Quality Mark
Volkswagen Group UK and The Royal National Lifeboat Institution are among the latest wave of companies to be awarded the NAPF's prestigious new Pension Quality Mark.
Three more schemes transfer over to the PPF
The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) took three more schemes under its wing last month (September), resulting in a further 1,054 people around the UK now receiving compensation - or will do so in the future.
Employee confidence in pensions returns
Employee confidence in pensions has strongly improved since the end of last year, when the economy went into recession, reveals the National Association of Pension Funds' latest Workplace Pensions Survey at the start of its Annual Conference.
Barriers increasing in pensions gender race
Women continue to lose out to men as the gender pensions gap widens according to the fifth annual Scottish Widows Women and Pensions Report - "Women's pensions today and tomorrow" as the financial crisis takes its toll. Over the past year fewer women are saving in to pensions, with over a quarter (26%) of those that could and should be, doing nothing to save for retirement (up from 22% in 2008) - this compares to just 15% of men. Only 47% of women are saving adequately compared to 59% of men and just 52% of women over 50 are saving enough, which has fallen from 57% last year.
Saga launches leading annuity service
Saga Personal Finance has launched an annuity service designed to deliver better pension income for people with pension pots of up to £100,000. Saga's new annuity service ensures there is a trusted brand offering competitive rates to meet the needs of the prudent savers of Middle Britain.
Future hope for private sector pensions
Extensive new research carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and BlackRock, has shed new light on employees' and employers' view of pensions.
Friends to provide stakeholder scheme for HDI-Gerling
The UK Branch of HDI-Gerling, the German industrial insurer, has selected Friends Provident to supply a new group stakeholder pension scheme for its UK employees.
Go-getting Active Pensioners
Romance and socialising have replaced bird-watching and bowls as a new generation of ‘Go.A.Ps' rips up the rule book on retirement - the first year post-work is the best year yet, according to a new study.
Aviva pensions TV advertising campaign to help consumers
Aviva is launching a new series of TV adverts designed to encourage younger generations to start thinking about pensions. The campaign, which can be seen on UK TV screens from Sunday 4 October, looks at retirement planning from the point of view of a young father and highlights the financial and emotional challenges which today's consumers face.
Adventurous, entrepreneurial and growing old disgracefully
Over 6.3 million Britons over 50, equivalent to one third (30%) of this generation, are planning to follow in the footsteps of Jack Nicholson, Ronnie Wood, Vivienne Westwood and Amanda Redman by ‘growing old disgracefully', according to new research, compared with just one sixth (14%) who feel they've become more conservative as they've grown older.
Retiree travel dreams could lack funding
Grannies and granddads dreaming about travelling in their golden age of retirement may find their funds sorely lacking when it comes to crunch time, according to new research from the fifth annual Scottish Widows UK Pensions Report.
1 in 5 SIPP investors use new rules to transfer protected rights
1 in 5 SIPP investors have taken financial advice and made use of last year's change in pensions rules to transfer their protected rights into a SIPP, according to Fidelity FundsNetworkTM.
Strife begins at 40 for pensions late-starters
Workers who don't pay a penny into a pension until they reach the age of 40 may need to set aside upwards of 33 per cent of their salary until age 65 if they want to retire on the holy grail pension of two-thirds annual salary, according to a study from Prudential.
16.5m Brits believe state provides adequate safety net
As many as 16.5 million (35%) of Brits believe that the State welfare system provides an adequate safety net for a modern standard of living according to research commissioned by Scottish Provident.
Government regulations put success of pension reforms at risk
The latest batch of regulations to implement the 2008 Pensions Act has been published today.
Aviva extends availability of online pension tracker
Aviva, one of the UK's leading pension providers, is making the Aviva Pension Tracker available to one million customers.
British pensioners returning to Blighty
Almost half of Brits abroad who are sending money back to the UK are aged 65 and over, suggesting that those pensioners who retired to the sun have been hit hardest by the recession and are being forced back to the UK, reveals currency specialists HiFX.
Scottish Widows search for policyholders due cash payment
An initiative by Scottish Widows, aimed at identifying policyholders who have yet to claim demutualisation payments, is searching for the remaining 33,900 policyholders who have still to come forward for their money, worth an average £2,070. Scottish Widows is eager to find these people before March 2010, when time runs out to register a claim.
Housing wealth could help support retirement
A report published by the Pensions Policy Institute commissioned by Prudential UK and Europe considers the role that housing wealth could play in supporting retirement for today's pensioners and for future generations of pensioners.
Online pension calculator to help plan for retirement
Almost one third of people may face financial difficulties when they retire, according to new research, and today the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and Association of British Insurers (ABI) are launching a tool to help.
The Nottingham to offer ‘best advice’ service
The Nottingham is set to help thousands of people living in its East Midlands heartland get their long-term financial futures back on track by launching a new service that provides access to ‘best advice' financial products and caters for their distinct needs.
Real retirement age between 74 and 86
Using published Government data, Standard Life has calculated the real retirement age of many people in the UK who currently have no retirement savings as anywhere between 74 and 86.
Unclaimed benefits prove costly for pensioners
Just Retirement Solutions, the equity release advice specialist, today reveals the scale of the challenge facing pensioners as one in four admit to not knowing about state benefit entitlements that could considerably bolster their income in retirement.
Brits confess they’re clueless about private pensions
As ElderCare Week begins (7 September 2009) Friends Provident is urging Brits to become more aware of the issues faced by older people and the need to plan ahead for retirement.
Recession increases burden for grandparents in debt
Research from the fifth annual Scottish Widows UK Pensions Report reveals that the debt burden for retirees is getting worse, whilst overall UK debt is going down. Almost one in six (15%) retired people in the UK have an outstanding mortgage - with an average debt of £50,100 - an eight thousand pound increase from 2008.
Legal & General launches new workplace benefits website
Legal & General has launched a new and improved website, which combines its Corporate Pension and Group Protection websites and will house the new Corporate ISA information and services in one place.
Recession delays retirement plans for 1.85 million people
The effects of the economic downturn on pension pots have forced more than a third of people over 55 to put off their retirement plans and continue working, according to MGM Advantage.
Pensioners own £654 billion property equity
Homeowners in England and Wales aged 65 and over have retained £611 billion of equity in their property and a further £43bn is held in Scotland as the housing market begins to show signs of stabilising following two years of decline, according to the latest findings from Prudential's Equity Release Index.
Government not doing enough to help Brits save for retirement
Almost nine out of ten Brits (87%) believe that the Government is not doing enough to encourage people to save for their retirement, according to a survey commissioned by Hymans Robertson, the leading independent benefits and investment consultant. Those with household incomes of £150,000 or over are most critical of the Government, having been especially hard hit by the recent Budget changes.
Millions of workers in state of 'pensions inertia'
Nearly a third (30 per cent) of Britain's 8.8 million active occupational pension scheme members pay no attention to how their retirement savings are invested and 29 per cent - more than 2.5 million scheme members - have never reviewed how their chosen pension fund is performing, according to new research from Prudential.
Just Retirement boosts the pensioner economy
Just Retirement has just launched its guide to underwriting which is designed to help IFAs understand the breadth of medical conditions and lifestyle factors that can trigger improvements to pensioner incomes via its enhanced annuity product.
UK property pension pots lose £29 billion in past year
Almost three million working Brits (8% of the UK population) are relying on their property to fund their retirement, according to new research from Baring Asset Management (Barings). Yet falling house prices have wiped a staggering £29 billion2 off the value of their property pension pots in the last year alone.
86% of pension funds fail investors
Poor performance among pension funds is effectively endemic, according to independent research from campaigning consumer website howmuchdoineedtoretire.co.uk.
Friends Provident: Red tape blights Personal Accounts progress
The current auto-enrolment proposals and the potential for leveling down spell further confusion for employers says Friends Provident.
Aviva improves pensions planning website
The Aviva Pension Tracker is a secure online tool that makes pensions planning simple for advisers and consumers. It includes Lisa, a ground-breaking virtual online guide, who shows visitors around the site and helps them understand the importance of pensions planning.
TUC explodes public sector pension myths
The claims by business groups, right wing pressure groups and opposition politicians that public sector pensions are unaffordable, out of control and produce easy immediate public expenditure savings are all myths, according to a new TUC briefing.
Pension savings neglected by workers
More than one in 10 workers (16 per cent) who have a pension say that during the past five years they have reduced the amount they contribute or have stopped saving into it altogether, according to new research from Prudential.
Retirees could boost retirement income by shopping around
Aviva is tackling one of the nation's retirement concerns head on with a new series of television and press adverts focusing on annuities.
Private pensions grow three times the rate of state pensions
The average income for a pensioner household has increased by 83% in real terms (i.e. after allowing for retail price inflation) in the past 20 years; from £212 per week in 1987 (in 2007/08 prices) to £389 per week in 2007/08, says Lloyds TSB. During the same period average earnings in the economy as a whole grew by 34% in real terms.
Two million over 50s face delayed retirement
Britain's over 50s are struggling more than ever to keep up the level of savings needed to fund a comfortable retirement lifestyle, according to the annual State of Retirement report commissioned by investment, pensions and insurance group LV= .
Extended retirement age not welcomed by everyone
Following the Government's announcement that the review of the default retirement age is being brought forward, research from Scottish Widows' UK Pensions Report reveals that not everyone would welcome the opportunity to work longer.
Over 900,000 over 65s still working
Following the Department of Work and Pensions' announcement of an early review into the default retirement age, fresh analysis from LV= highlights how those already reaching pension age are responding to mounting financial pressures and the impact of recession.
Pensions relief changes 'totally at odds with incentives to save'
The Government's changes to tax relief on pension contributions remain "totally at odds with incentives to save", the Chief Executive of the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) said today.
Policyholders vote on Aviva's reattribution offer
Over 40% of eligible policyholders have now voted on whether to accept Aviva's cash reattribution offer. All other customers must now decide whether to accept the offer and should return their completed voting forms to Aviva - no later than 21 August 2009.
Equity mix remains top choice for pension investments
More than one in three people retiring within the next 10 years say they would prefer their pension to be invested partly in the stock market and the remainder in other types of investments, according to new research from Prudential.
Relevant mean is too mean
Government amendments to Finance Bill 2009 tabled on 3rd July 2009 have added some protection for people paying annual and recurring single contributions under the Treasury's anti-forestalling proposals.
Pensions savings buck the downturn but confidence falls
As the nation has been hit hard by the recession in recent months, the fifth annual Scottish Widows UK Pensions Report reveals that pensions savings have actually increased since last year and those saving adequately have increased by 8% since the lows of 2006. While pensions savings have gradually been on the up in recent years there has always been a clear gender divide. In 2008 women closed the gap on men but this has increased again this year. 59% of men are saving adequately compared to just 47% of women. The over 50s are also suffering, with this group the most likely to have cut their savings in the last 12 months (21%). Women over 50 have been hit the hardest, the index has fallen from 57% in 2008 to 52% this year.
Friends Provident to provide stakeholder scheme for Swinton
Swinton, the UK's leading high street insurance retailer, has selected Friends Provident to supply a new group stakeholder pension scheme for its 4700 employees.
Pension schemes to spend more time on engagement
Key findings from the National Association of Pension Funds 2009 engagement survey show that nearly half (49%) of pension schemes will spend more time scrutinising the actions of their fund managers on engagement issues as a result of the economic crisis.
Britain faces uncertain financial future with surge of retirees
British society is undergoing a significant shift as families with two generations of retirees become increasingly commonplace. According to consumer research by Friends Provident, increasing longevity means that 57% of retirees also have parents who are retired.
AEGON launches Secure Lifetime Income
AEGON is launching a new variable annuity investment product aimed at the pre- and at- retirement market which represents a new development in the UK variable annuity market.
£5.4bn of benefits fails to reach older people
Commenting on the new DWP figures showing up to £5.4bn worth of means-tested benefits has gone unclaimed by older people in 2007-8, Michelle Mitchell, Charity Director for Age Concern and Help the Aged, said: "These figures show just how badly the means-tested benefits system, which was supposed to lift older people out of poverty, is bogged down. The increase of 1 percentage point in the number of Pension Credit claimants still means one in three pensioners are missing out on this benefit. Even in the grip of a recession, eligible pensioners are still not claiming an average of £31 a week of Pension Credit alone.
Ageing population putting increasing pressure on family finances
As the Department of Health prepares to publish its green paper on long-term social care funding this month, research reveals a potentially difficult financial future for Britain's ageing population.
More pensioners having to work to supplement incomes
Key Retirement Solutions comment on the latest Pensioners' Income Series figures from the Department for Work and Pensions which reveal that more of the UK population are working in their retirement years to supplement their incomes. The total of all pensioner units (comprising single pensioners and couples) receiving income from earnings for 2007-08 was 17% compared to 12% in 1997-98. This means that at least 1.4 million pensioners are still working in retirement. The figures also reveal that pensioner couples are more inclined to rely on earned income with 29% being in receipt of income from earnings, up from 22% for 1997-98.
Employers urged to re-think pension cuts
As the credit crunch continues to bite and employers increasingly look to cut costs by closing pension schemes, Friends Provident is urging employers to limit the impact of this sharing of risk and ensure employees are not forced to take on more responsibility for financial security in retirement.
Retention of top talent a major issue
The seventh annual Origen Employee Benefits Survey has found that, even in these unprecedented times, nearly two-thirds of UK firms agree that the recruitment of high quality staff remains a challenge.
Pension savers miss out on £720 million
Working people in company pension schemes are missing out on huge sums by neglecting to save in tax-efficient ways, according to research from Unbiased.co.uk. High-rate taxpayers that are members of their employers' occupational pension scheme will miss out on an extra £720 million tax relief this year by failing to make Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs).
Ignorance is bliss? Not if you want a better retirement
Just Retirement, the specialist retirement solutions provider, reveals the scale of the challenge facing Britain's pensioners with the launch of a study which shows that 3 in 4 of those cashing in their pension could be missing out on a better retirement income because they don't understand all the options, particularly the right to shop around for a better income.
Building knowledge and confidence key to improving pension saving
Findings from the fourth National Association of Pension Funds' (NAPF) Workplace Pensions Survey, show that tackling a lack of knowledge and confidence amongst those who choose not to join a company pension scheme when one is available could create a step change in improving the country's pension saving.
Aviva identifies ‘the forever generation’
Today's children could become what Aviva has dubbed ‘the forever generation'. They are the generation who will be retiring later, paying their mortgage for longer and having children live with them well into their twilight years.
Pensioner divorce leaves over 60’s financially worse off
Women divorcees over 60 are losing out financially due to the recession, SHIP- the equity release trade body- reveals today. There are 13,678 people over 60 who divorce annually, but due to the housing market crash, couples who sell their property to divide their assets could lose up to 22.5% of the value of their home- having serious consequences for their retirement income.
Brits believe company pension schemes may close to all workers
Seven out of 10 Brits believe that company pension schemes could be closed to all workers as a result of the increase in tax on pension contributions for high earners announced in the 2009 Budget, according to a survey commissioned by Hymans Robertson, the leading independent benefits and investment consultant.
Announcing the launch of AEGON secure lifetime income plan
AEGON has announced the forthcoming launch of a new retirement solution, which meets the flexible investment needs and desire for income security that a growing number of people in the UK are now demanding.
Warwickshire Pension Fund looks to Hymans Robertson
Hymans Robertson, the leading independent benefits and investment consultant, has been appointed to act as the investment consultant to the £850m Warwickshire Pension Fund.
People need pensions - ABI launches new consumer guide
The ABI has produced a consumer leaflet, People need pensions, to answer some key questions about pensions and annuities in the context of the current economic circumstances.
Pensions tax relief must be protected to boost saving
Giving evidence to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Finance Bill Sub-Committee on the recent Budget on Wednesday 20 May 2009, the ABI's Director of Life and Savings, Maggie Craig, is expected to say: "The Government's decision to restrict tax relief on pension contributions for people earning over £150,000 a year could have a damaging impact on pension savings in the UK. The move will also add an extra layer of complexity to pensions, in direct contradiction of the ‘A-Day' measures introduced in 2006 to simplify the pensions tax regime. While the measure itself will affect only a small number of very high earners, we are concerned that the principle that people who save for their retirement will get tax relief has been breached. Tax relief exists as compensation for responsible people who agree to defer some of their income now, so that they are less reliant on the public purse in retirement.
HSBC’s new Protected Retirement Fund option
HSBC is launching (20 May) an innovative new Protected Retirement Fund option into its group defined contribution (DC) pension proposition, offering businesses and their employees 100% capital protection on pension investments, while maximising potential growth by locking in 100% of the gains achieved from global stock markets.
NAPF launches new service for local authority pension specialists
The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) has today launched LA PensionsConnection, a new service designed to provide information and support to those involved in local government pensions.
Standard Life urges employers to rethink pension provision
Employees are disengaged with their retirement planning and pensions in general. Final salary schemes are closing and defined contribution schemes have lost up to 40% of their value over the past 12 months. Against that backdrop, the UK population is ageing fast with, for the first time, the over 65 year olds outnumbering the under-16s.
SIPP investors tackle market volatility head on
Investors taking control of their retirement savings through a SIPP are capitalising on current market conditions to beat volatility and get better returns, according to Barclays Stockbrokers. Nearly a third of SIPP investors (32%) are increasing their exposure to equities, and only one in ten (9%) are moving away from equities.
‘Options' initiative improves annuity transfer times
The pensions industry's ‘Options' initiative has delivered significant improvements in its first three months of operation, cutting the time taken for annuity transfers between providers to an average of just eight calendar days.
LV= confirms RPI-linked annuities will not be reduced
Retirement specialist LV= has confirmed that the announcement today of the Retail Price Index (RPI) falling to -0.4%, taking the UK into deflation for the first time in 50 years, will not affect its annuity customers whose income is RPI-linked. This means those annuitants will not see a reduction in their retirement income.
Confidence in pensions returning
There has been a small but important improvement in employee confidence in pensions according to the fourth National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) Workplace Pensions Survey.
Interest rates held at 0.5% 'another blow for pensioners'
Director at Fairinvestment.co.uk, James Caldwell comments on the Bank of England's decision to hold interest rates at their record low of 0.5 per cent.
Aviva slashes inherited estate payout
As Aviva announces a new offer over the reattribution of its inherited estate, which will see the average payment offered to policy holders slashed from £1,000 to £600, Which? chief executive Peter Vicary-Smith, says: "Policyholders will be disappointed by the cut in the payout. The FSA's continual failure to defend policyholders' interests has cost them a substantial amount of money.
Ascentric launch new pension plan
Ascentric, the independent wrap platform, has launched the ‘Ascentric Pension Account' (APA), a simple, low cost SIPP that provides IFA clients with the opportunity to consolidate their holdings into a single product offering flexibility, choice and transparency together with the ability to view and monitor performance online.
L&G Investment Management wins at UK Pensions Awards
Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) has once again been recognised as an industry leader, winning a total of three awards at the 2009 UK Pensions Awards ceremony organised by Professional Pensions.LGIM were shortlisted for five catgories and won three:
Norwich Union annuities service is a hit with customers
New figures from Norwich Union, soon to be Aviva, show that 95% of customers who take out an annuity through Norwich Union are happy with the service they receive, with three quarters stating they are ‘very' or ‘extremely' satisfied.
LV= Flexible Transitions Account gets 5 star rating from Defaqto
The recently launched LV= Flexible Transitions Account, which offers people a wide range of pension investment options and choices to suit their individual needs, has received the top 5 Star Rating from Defaqto.
More confusion for pensions?
The Government today issued regulations which will allow occupational pension schemes to pay small pension pots entirely as a lump sum, without taking into account other pension benefits which an individual may have.
Budget proposals pose threat to pensions
Hymans Robertson, the leading independent pensions and benefits consultancy, has come out in support of the Treasury Select Committee's call for the Government to monitor the effect of removing higher tax relief on pensions contributions:
Share rollover - still a valid exercise?
Legal & General Managing Director of Workplace Savings, Tony Filbin, comments on the ongoing attraction of share rollover into a Company SIPP: "The Chancellor's budget last month sparked much comment around the increase in tax on high earners as a result of the reduction in tax relief for those earning over £150,000. Most of those commenting suggest this would be likely to put high earners off making contributions or reinvesting their maturing share schemes into a Company SIPP.
Keeping pensions in the family
A new SIPP from AXA has been launched, offering families and business partners a flexible way to invest together, tax efficiently.
HSBC launches World Selection Personal Pension
HSBC has launched a flexible and straightforward Personal Pension Plan based on its innovative and globally diverse multi-manager, multi-asset class World Selection portfolios.
SIPP investors take retirement savings into their own hands
Investors taking control of their retirement savings in a SIPP are sufficiently confident in their investment choices and believe that they can outperform the professionals. A Barclays Stockbrokers survey revealed almost nine out of ten SIPP investors (89%) opened their SIPP account because they were confident they could outperform a professional pension fund manager.
Pension taxation changes will have wider destructive impact
The Chancellor's Budget announcement that pension tax relief will be restricted for top earners would seem at first sight to be a measured response to the need to increase Government revenues in difficult economic times. But as has happened before, the Government has taken a decision that will contribute to many more private sector employees losing their quality pension schemes, says the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA).