Pensions Advice - AVC's

BizzyB

Sorry this was posted elsewhere - didnt know how to delete the post:mad:

Anyway:

I have just moved jobs and have joined the new company's group pension scheme - in my previous employment I had a group pension and 2 AVC's - Pru and Fidelity - what can i do with the funds in the AVC's as i know that the pension group fund stays frozen till retirement?

Can i reinvest my AVC's into my new group fund with the transfer value? - it is with Norwich Union

Can I cash them in and if so what loss could i expect in comparrison to the transfer value?

Any other advice? Collectively the transfer fund value is about 7k.

dunstonh

Can i reinvest my AVC's into my new group fund with the transfer value? - it is with Norwich Union

If they accept it then you can.

Can I cash them in and if so what loss could i expect in comparrison to the transfer value?

You cannnot cash them in.

BizzyB

Provided I am able to transfer/combine the AVC's - how do I go about this, is it something I can do myself or would I need to pay for this to be completed on my behalf - if the latter is the case, what sort of reasonable cost would I expect to pay over as a service/commision charge - is it a set-fee or a commision based percentage based on fund value?

In relation to the not being able to cash them in - is there an option to "sell" such as with endowment policies?? - just a thought.........


Thanks in advance.

dunstonh

is it something I can do myself or would I need to pay for this to be completed on my behalf

Is the new group pension any good? What are the charges like? What are the fund options like? Can you research your own investment strategy and pick funds to match that and your risk profile? Can you cope with the transfer paperwork (which can be a bit heavy)?

If yes to those, you can do it yourself. If not, then you are best getting an IFA in.

what sort of reasonable cost would I expect to pay over as a service/commision charge - is it a set-fee or a commision based percentage based on fund value?

Fee around £600. Could be lower, could be higher. Or if commission option from 1% of the fund value to 7% of the fund value depending on what you agree with the adviser.

In relation to the not being able to cash them in - is there an option to "sell" such as with endowment policies?? - just a thought.........

Nope. The Govt give you tax relief when you make pension contributions. They do this as an incentive for you to build up a retirement fund. They dont want you to access it before retirement though as a trade off.