Pension Transfer

lexington013

Hi, currently have a Prudential private pension that is invested in Blackrock Aquila equities. Current value is circa £116,000.
I'm looking to lower the risk by moving this into a cash balance pension with my current employer (Tesco) as I plan to retire, semi retire at 55 (5 years time). The Prudential pension does not have much being paid into monthly, only enough to cover the yearly admin charge. Is this a wise move?
The Prudential pension has performed well over the last 7 years.
I'm pretty risk averse and want to set up the transfer.
The Tesco pension is ticking along ok with small investment growth showing.
Your thoughts and advice are welcome.
I do have a FS pension with a previous employer which I can access at 65.

dunstonh

I'm looking to lower the risk by moving this into a cash balance pension with my current employer (Tesco) as I plan to retire, semi retire at 55 (5 years time).

That is quite a jump. 100% equities to 100% cash. Especially for someone with 5 years to go.

I'm pretty risk averse and want to set up the transfer.

You are replacing investment risk with shortfall risk and inflation risk. A phasing down of risk makes sense but going from one extreme to the other in one step is unusual.

Also, this action suggests you intend buying an annuity in 5 years time rather than using income drawdown. Is that correct?