Pension Advice Please

lucy7509

Hello

I have left my employer and want to transfer my small pension into an existing pension I had with another company. I have been informed I can only do this through an IFA, any idea how much this advice is going to cost me?

The options are pretty clear cut, I either transfer the pension amount into my other pension scheme, or I lose the employer contributions and get a refund for the money I paid in.

Don't see why I need any advice on this, it seems pretty clear cut to me.
Also where would I find an IFA?
Thanks in advance for the advice:)

ffacoffipawb

lucy7509 wrote: »

Hello

I have left my employer and want to transfer my small pension into an existing pension I had with another company. I have been informed I can only do this through an IFA, any idea how much this advice is going to cost me?

The options are pretty clear cut, I either transfer the pension amount into my other pension scheme, or I lose the employer contributions and get a refund for the money I paid in.

Don't see why I need any advice on this, it seems pretty clear cut to me.
Also where would I find an IFA?
Thanks in advance for the advice:)

You could transfer it into a sippdeal www.sippdeal.co.uk SIPP for a flat fee of £50+VAT. No connection, just a satisfied customer.

Obviously you must be happy picking individual shares for this one.

If you only want funds, Hargreaves Lansdown offer such a SIPP.

dunstonh

If it is a final salary scheme, then most will want an IFA to sign off on it. That includes both the providers mentioned above.

Don't see why I need any advice on this, it seems pretty clear cut to me.

How do the retained benefits compare to the benefits you will get from the transfer value in the new scheme?
What is the critical yield? Is it low enough to justify transfer?

mancmum

We needed to do this and the IFA we consulted did not charge. It was part of an initial free first interview (and being done because husband was made redundant in bad circumstances).

I found him on the thinkpositive network. Don't know if I am allowed to say that.

Beware it took ages for the transfer to finally happen.

dunstonh

We needed to do this and the IFA we consulted did not charge. It was part of an initial free first interview (and being done because husband was made redundant in bad circumstances).

Are you saying the IFA made a written recommendation to transfer into another occupational pension scheme without earning any commission or fee?

That would be highly unusual.

A final salary scheme transfer has an extremely high liability to the adviser and whilst you may get an off the record opinion based on the fact that about 9 times out of 10 its best left where it is, I doubt any IFA would do a transaction like that without earning a penny.

I found him on the thinkpositive network. Don't know if I am allowed to say that.

Networks are not advisers. They are back office administrators for IFAs. You wouldnt pick the adviser on the basis of the network. It would be like picking a shop on the basis of the wholesaler that supplies the shop.

I am going to guess that your transaction was done on commission.

lucy7509

Thanks for the insight, I am finding this quite frustrating, I have found and IFA who is looking into this with me, my concern is the time it will take to transfer the money.

We are not talking large amounts here, but as the employer contribution comes to a couple thousand pounds, it would be a shame to lose it.

My other pension is a salary based one, when it pays out.

Filling in the forms for the IFA

DavidLaGuardia

dunstonh wrote: »

Networks are not advisers. They are back office administrators for IFAs. You wouldnt pick the adviser on the basis of the network. It would be like picking a shop on the basis of the wholesaler that supplies the shop.

Just incase some pedant picks this up, thinkpositive.co.uk is Postive Solutions who are a National IFA and not a network. However, they are a DE FACTO network and Dunsonh's comments are correct.

dunstonh

Thank you.

Some networks have moved towards a more like salesforce like model and away from the conventional network model. Certain networks are intrusive into the business of the adviser and others leave them totally alone to do run their own business only supplying compliance services and bulk buying power (which was the original aim of a network). No surprise that I prefer the latter. I would prefer some definition to be in place now to categorise the networks and "network" is no longer sufficient. Just as IFA is no longer sufficient as that covers too wide a variety of advisers as well. Although the RDR review will deal with the that.