Which is the Best Pensions Provider?

rooban

Hi all,

Ok , I may be asking a tough question here. My employer has asked me to start a pensions fund and they'll pay some money in to it. It is non contributory but I haven't a clue who are the reasonable ones out there. What sort of stuff I need to look in to? And are pension contributions are good currently?, have heard some depressing stories! Also I have been told an Index linked one would work well. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

dunstonh

There is no such thing as a best pension provider. The answer differs depending on the criteria you set.

A pension is an investment. You can invest in tens of thousands of places but not every pension has access to all of those. Some pensions only have one investment fund!!!

And are pension contributions are good currently?,

For a basic rate tax payer, not really. An ISA offers greater flexibility and choice. Although the free money from the employer is very good.

have heard some depressing stories!

Which have very little to do with what you are looking at but thanks to media hype, you have got that view.

Also I have been told an Index linked one would work well.

Decisions on how you take the income in retirement are made when you retire. Not now. So you can ignore that.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

You need to decide how you want the money invested, what features you want (internet access, online switching, accepts employer contributions, free switches, unlimited switches etc) and then look at charges. That should narrow the field down from just over 100 companies.

Just keep remembering that this is an investment and it should be treated as such.

rooban

dunstonh wrote:

There is no such thing as a best pension provider. The answer differs depending on the criteria you set.

A pension is an investment. You can invest in tens of thousands of places but not every pension has access to all of those. Some pensions only have one investment fund!!!



For a basic rate tax payer, not really. An ISA offers greater flexibility and choice. Although the free money from the employer is very good.



Which have very little to do with what you are looking at but thanks to media hype, you have got that view.



Decisions on how you take the income in retirement are made when you retire. Not now. So you can ignore that.



You need to decide how you want the money invested, what features you want (internet access, online switching, accepts employer contributions, free switches, unlimited switches etc) and then look at charges. That should narrow the field down from just over 100 companies.

Just keep remembering that this is an investment and it should be treated as such.

Thanks dunston,

My head is spinning anyway! Would you recommend any one particularly? Thanks?

dunstonh

I cannot recommend one.

1 - because it would break FSA rules
2 - because it would break board rules
3 - because I know nothing about your needs, investment profile, experience etc

For me to recommend one now would be like asking me to guess your favourite colour.

EdInvestor

rooban wrote:

My employer has asked me to start a pensions fund and they'll pay some money in to it. It is non contributory.

Gosh. Genuine free money to be placed in an account of your choice.A rare offer these days.

but I haven't a clue who are the reasonable ones out there.

A point on the basics.I know that when most people think "pension", they mean "income in old age". But a pension is also a technical term for a tax wrapper provided by the Government, into which you can pay money meant for your retirement and they will let you do this tax free - at least for the moment.

There are all kinds of different sorts of pension tax wrappers.There are two main points you need to know about them:

1.How much do they cost ( what are their charges?) and

2.What investment options do they offer within them for me to put my money into? Many funds or only a few? Shares? Bonds?

There is a new type of pension wrapper now which is very suitable for people who might move jobs and want a variety of investment choices plus low costs . It's called a Sipp (Self Invested personal pension). Sipps come in many forms, from bespoke and expensive to plain vanilla and cheap.The latter might be good for your purposes.

So why don't you first ask the company if they will pay money into a Sipp if you set one up ? Much more is known about good and bad Sipps than about good and bad ordinary pensions, so it's easier to help.

Just one question: are you contracted in or out of the state pension?

dunstonh

There is a new type of pension wrapper now which is very suitable for people who might move jobs and want a variety of investment choices plus low costs . It's called a Sipp (Self Invested personal pension).

An innaccurate generic description. If you want a more accurate description I would refer you to the regulators website. You wont see mention of low cost with SIPPs on it.

SIPPs, personal pensions and stakeholders are all flexible with employment.