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Stakeholder, good idea?

I have a paid up personal pension with The Prudential. I have not paid into it for 17 years. It has a transfer value of £4760. It seems to be sat there doing nothing so I was thinking of transferring this into the Scottish Widows Stakeholder.
If I do this on line the annual charge is reduced to 0.8%.
I am intending to pay in £50 per month.
I also have an NHS final salary pension which I have been paying into for 18 years.

Does this seem a good plan?

Any thoughts on which funds are best to go for in this Stakeholder.
I am willing to accept a reasonable degree of risk bearing in mind my age, 38.
Any advice appreciated.

Comments

  • EdInvestor
    EdInvestor Posts: 15,749 Forumite
    It seems to be sat there doing nothing...



    What makes you think that? Have you looked at its annual performance over the past 5 years?

    If it is doing nothing, is this because it is invested in a poor fund? If dso, have you investigated what other funds are available and how they have performed? Have you asked what charges you are paying?If they are high, perhaps that has something to do with it. Have you asked the Pru if they can offer a better deal?

    A pension is only a tax wrapper, it's what the money is invested in, and the charges you pay that count.

    What would you invest the money in if you moved it to Scottish Widows?
    Trying to keep it simple...;)
  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 118,613 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Pru's with profits fund has been doing well where there are no guarantees. They have only been capping performance on those where there are guarantees as the guarantees are more valuable in the long run. As Ed says, it is unlikely to be doing nothing and if it is, there is probably a reason behind it (such as a guaranteed annuity rate or GMP).
    If I do this on line the annual charge is reduced to 0.8%

    They dont discount by much do they.
    Does this seem a good plan?

    No. The scottish Widows Personal Pension is better and for larger amounts their fund supermarket pension is even better (its one of the few fund supermarket pensions that can undercut HL for example)
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • gmanNL
    gmanNL Posts: 11 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    Scottish Widows Stakeholder pension when opened through HArgreaves Lansdowne, online, the AMC is 0.53%.
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