Lost your pension?

Many people have lost track with old pensions, frankly it is hardly surprising given the number of name changes, mergers and acquisitions of various pension companies over the last 40 years or so.  Perhaps you have lost your pension too.

Consider the various jobs that you have had over the years, however small, perhaps there is an old pension lurking somewhere in the midst of your curriculum vitae.

Pension evolution…. perhaps revolution

Pensions have improved dramatically over the years and almost unrecognisable from those I first understood over 20 years ago. The evolution continues and something that adviser firms like ourselves spend a lot of time researching and reviewing. Cheap is not always best, but then neither is the most expensive.

The media, consumer groups and various politicians have regularly made statements about the charges on pensions, some of which are accurate, some are not. However, I imagine you would like to know if your old style pension could be brought up to date.

Find your lost pension

The Pension Tracing Service (PTS) was set up to help find lost pensions. In essence everyone has a National Insurance number that is unique to them, this is the main tool used to search for lost old pensions. It is believed that there could around 50million dormant or lost pensions “in the system” by 2050 due to the growing number of small pensions (due to auto enrolment, or workplace pensions).

Once lost, now found

Last year the PTS was contacted over 145,000 times and we expect this to increase considerably. They aren’t always successful in tracing pensions, but last year managed to trace 87% of those believed to exist.

Regain control of your pension

So it would be advisable to check if you have any lost pensions and then check them (and any old pensions that you haven’t lost) to determine if they can be improved. I have put a free guide together about this, which I have called “Regaining Control of Your Pension”. You can download it for free (tell your friends and colleagues) simply by completing the online request below this item.

Dominic Thomas
Solomons IFA

You can read more articles about Pensions, Wealth Management, Retirement, Investments, Financial Planning and Estate Planning on my blog which gets updated every week. If you would like to talk to me about your personal wealth planning and how we can make you stay wealthier for longer then please get in touch by calling 08000 736 273 or email info@solomonsifa.co.uk