Safeguarding your pension

Providing an income for your loved ones to enjoy, long after you are gone

If you’ve spent a lifetime saving for retirement, you’d probably like any remaining money to go to a loved one after your death. But whether pension benefits are payable to a beneficiary, and how they’ll receive them, is dependent on the type of pension you’ve chosen and how you’ve accessed it in your retirement.
Continue reading “Safeguarding your pension”

Is retirement the right choice for you?

General guidelines that can help you determine whether you’re ready to retire

One of the most difficult decisions you’ll ever have to make is when to retire. It’s a personal choice that depends on many factors, both financial and non-financial. There’s no single right answer, but there are some key things to consider that can help you decide if retirement is the right choice for you.
Continue reading “Is retirement the right choice for you?”

Self-employed extremely vulnerable to loss of income

81% aren’t seeking financial advice

Self-employed people are at risk of financial hardship if they don’t have sufficient provision in place. Without a regular income, it can be difficult to cover expenses and also save for the future. In many cases, the self-employed are unable to claim for many of the benefits that employees are entitled to, including statutory sick pay.
Continue reading “Self-employed extremely vulnerable to loss of income”

Putting life on hold

Cost-of-living crisis delays homeownership, having children and retirement

Rising living costs have been so significant in recent months that most UK households will have noticed a squeeze on their monthly budgets. Not only does this have a direct impact on people’s lifestyles, even though they are making every effort to cut back, but it has a knock-on effect on their lifelong goals such as owning a home or retiring comfortably.
Continue reading “Putting life on hold”

Cash may not be king

Deciding whether to withdraw cash from your pension pot

Choosing what to do with your pension is a big decision. If you’ve been saving into a defined contribution pension (sometimes called ‘money purchase’) during your working life, from age 55 (age 57 in 2028) you need to decide what to do with the money you’ve saved towards your pension when you eventually decide to retire.
Continue reading “Cash may not be king”

Are you saving enough for retirement?

One in six over-55s have no pension savings yet

Despite the fact that the government has been trying to encourage people to save for their retirement through initiatives such as auto-enrolment, there are still too many Britons who have no pension savings at all. Research reveals that a fifth (20%) of people still have no pension savings at all, and people nearing retirement aren’t doing much better[1].
Continue reading “Are you saving enough for retirement?”