Stakeholder Pensions - Death benefits after retirement?

jamborino

If you take out an SHP, what happens if you die after retiring, i.e., once you've used your fund to buy an annuity and you've started drawing the pension?
Does your widow/widower automatically get that pension?

Many thanks,

Jim

Pal

Depends what type of annuity you buy. You can buy annuities that are "single life" so that the pension stops when you die, or you can elect a proportion of your pension that your spouse will receive if you predecease her e.g. 50% or 66%.

Obviously the higher the proportion of pension that your wife is going to get, the lower your pension when you retire.

You can also elect guarantee periods e.g. if you die within 10 years your wife gets the balance of the 10 years pension payments that you would have received had you lived that long.

jamborino

Thanks Pal,

You'd be surprised (or maybe not!) at how difficult it is to get answers to these fairly straightforward questions from certain insurance companies.

One in particular will definitely not be getting any business from me, having demonstrated an unbelievable level of incompetence and indifference over the last few days in response to my efforts clarify this particular point (you know who you are Legal & General).

Jim

dunstonh

Legal and General will tell you that they are a major pensions player. However, out of all the top companies available, they get the least of my pension business. Their product is quite good but the service is awful.

You can also get annually increasing annuities and 100% spouse option.

You need to remember that insurance companies, if you go direct, are often not allowed to give advice but only factual information. This can limit the conversation in some areas. Especially if you ask their views or opinons on something.