Clearly, shopping around for the right pension can mean the difference between a miserable and comfortable retirement. When deciding what do with your pension, it is crucial that you receive appropriate independent advice to explain what options are available. Many people are used to doing this for their insurance needs already, so it makes sense to do the same with the form of income that will dictate what sort of lifestyle you have on retirement.
Therefore, the review will focus on understanding the extent to which pensioners can compare the larger range of retirement options available to them since the introduction of the new pension freedoms. The FCA was quoted as saying: ‘We want to understand whether savers can compare products, shop around, switch providers where they are not receiving what they want and make good, informed, decisions’.
The watchdog’s remit is to look at the availability of options for people moving towards retirement.
This communication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice, investment recommendations or investment research. You should seek advice from a professional adviser before embarking on any financial planning activity. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this communication is correct, we are not responsible for any errors or omissions.
The UK government has admitted there are not enough pension transfer specialist advisers to deal with demand, particularly in the case of more complex transfers into overseas pensions. This was the government’s response in March to a consultation launched two years ago, on whether the need to take financial advice, introduced with pension freedoms, created difficulties for overseas residents – residents such as those living in Cyprus wishing to transfer their pension savings from the UK to a qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme (QROPS).
There are few, if any, financial decisions as important as deciding what to do with your pension. Nowadays there are so many choices, but the factors that influence the path you choose are complex and should only ever be undertaken in full knowledge of the various options available as well as their many implications.