Projected pension drops 50% in 4 years!!

LeeJ_2

Ok I'd be the first to admit that I haven't given enough thought to my pension.

Four years ago I wrote to the trustees of the pension fund holding a pension for me from a job I retired from in 1991. When they replied in 2002 they gave a projected final pension of approx £15K pa. Up-to-date now I write again to get an update on this. I am now told that the projected pension will be approx £6000.

The figure has fallen from £15K pa to £6K pa in just 4 years. By the time I retire in 2020 I'll owe them money at this rate.

I intend to query this but does such a dramatic fall sound possible?

penrhyn

You don't say what sort of pension scheme it was, final salary or money purchase for example. Is it company scheme or one run by a pension provider?

A lot of pension schemes have failed completely leaving the contributers with nothing, so yes I guess things can change. The trustees may have changed the rules of the scheme as well since you left.

LeeJ_2

penrhyn wrote:

You don't say what sort of pension scheme it was, final salary or money purchase for example. Is it company scheme or one run by a pension provider?

A lot of pension schemes have failed completely leaving the contributers with nothing, so yes I guess things can change. The trustees may have changed the rules of the scheme as well since you left.

It was/is a final salary scheme. It is a company scheme (Kvaerner). I never actually worked for them but they bought out the company I used to work for long after I left that company.

ReportInvestor

Commiserations.

Your projected income has actually fallen by 60% .

Click here to see the cause of the problem

No guarantees for fearful pensioners in Kvaerner village

LeeJ_2

I should know a lot more about it - but don't. All I know is that it is managed by Kvaerner Trustees Ltd.

You are correct of course - 60% drop - in four years - that is really going some.

So what is the popular thinking in these situations? Are things likely to get worse if I stay put where I am. Should I be looking to transfer into some other type of pension scheme or would that be 'frying pan into the fire'?

ReportInvestor

I'd first write to them to request a transfer value.

LeeJ_2

ReportInvestor wrote:

I'd first write to them to request a transfer value.

Just read the article on Kvaerner - doesn't make pleasant reading.

I have a transfer value from them of £62,321

ReportInvestor

We know need to know your age to make any sort of assessment.

I assume the projected pension kicks is for 65.

I also assume that you are male (it's never safe to assume anything these days).

And are there any perks attached to your work pension e.g. inflation proofing, pension to partner if you kick the bucket etc.

Pal

LeeJ: I cannot see how your 50%/60% figure can be correct, and I think you may be comparing incorrect figures. Final salary schemes that have not wound up are one of the safest investments there is, and that is the position you are in. I also do not know any final salary scheme that provides "projections" to ex-employees. (To many variables and scope for misunderstanding).

Can you post details of the figures you are comparing and we'll see if we can clarify things.

p.s. For reasons that I can't be bothered to write out at the moment, the Mail articles that ReportInvestor links to are clearly misinformed scare mongering. The Pension Protection Fund that would guarantee a large proportion of everyone's benefits is not even mentioned! They are simply attempting to sell papers rather than inform people about what is going on. Ignore.

Reportinvestor - where did you get the 60% figure from? It is not mentioned in either article.

Pal

To repeat my previous question:

Pal wrote:

Reportinvestor - where did you get the 60% figure from? It is not mentioned in either article.

Pal

Reportinvestor - where did you get the 60% figure from? It is not mentioned in either article.