Pension help for a dummy

iammumtoone

This is the post I have been dreading writing and putting off but I need to take my head out of the sand and sort something.

I am 45 and don't have any pension apart from what I have been paying in via work schemes, I am aware this probably isn't enough.

I worked since I was 17 paying work pension schemes with a 7 year gap.

I don't know where to start, please no lectures that I should have done something before now. I bet I am not alone in this situation I might even be better of than some as at least have been paying in something (via work). I have a mortgage that will be paid off before I retire. I live alone and need to work on the basis that it will stay this way.

Where do I start? I am guessing the easiest thing is to start paying more into my current work pension (nest). Are there any recommended on-line calculators I can play with to work out what I pay now equates to yearly income when I retire.

Anyone able to reassure me that it will be ok and I still have time Any recommendations on how much extra I should be paying into the pension, I can't afford too much but I guess anything is better than nothing.

Thanks

HappyHarry

45 isn’t too late, and it sounds like you’ve number of pensions already, which is good news.

First thing to do is find out what pension provision you already have in place. Contact all your old and current providers, and ask them what income you might expect in retirement.

Don’t forget to also contact DWP and ask about your state pension.

Once armed with this information, come back here with some details, and the help you receive will be far more specific to your situation.

Dazed_and_confused

You should be able to check your state pension entitlement today simply by looking at your personal tax account on gov.uk.

Read it carefully as it may suggest you are going to get £159.55 but you are likely to have only earned a smaller amount to date, the £159.55 (the current maximum under the "new" state pension rules) will likely only apply if there are some additional years contributions.

iammumtoone

Dazed_and_confused wrote: »

Read it carefully as it may suggest you are going to get £159.55 but you are likely to have only earned a smaller amount to date, the £159.55 (the current maximum under the "new" state pension rules) will likely only apply if there are some additional years contributions.

Yes it says I will get 159.55 (thats £8,3209 per year) Wow I never realised it would be that much, thank you I was expecting less I am no longer so worried. I appreciate that amount won't be so much when I retire but I will be mortgage free and am quite capable to live frugally plus I still have my private pensions to add on. I will find out after the xmas break their values.

As I read it all I have to do to get the full 159.55 is to continue to pay my NI contributions for the time it states (7 years which is long before I retire), I will make sure I do this. Have I interpreted that correctly?

Or is it only my to date figure that is guaranteed and the final figure (159.55) depends on future governments.

robin61

iammumtoone wrote: »

Yes it says I will get 159.55 (thats £8,3209 per year) Wow I never realised it would be that much, thank you I was expecting less I am no longer so worried. I appreciate that amount won't be so much when I retire but I will be mortgage free and am quite capable to live frugally plus I still have my private pensions to add on. I will find out after the xmas break their values.

As I read it all I have to do to get the full 159.55 is to continue to pay my NI contributions for the time it states (7 years which is long before I retire), I will make sure I do this. Have I interpreted that correctly?

Or is it only my to date figure that is guaranteed and the final figure (159.55) depends on future governments.

The value isn't frozen. The State pension currently benefits from the triple lock so it should keep up in real terms. Hopefully it'll stay like that. No guarantee though although you would have to think it would be index linked in some other way.

iammumtoone

robin61 wrote: »

The value isn't frozen. The State pension currently benefits from the triple lock so it should keep up in real terms. Hopefully it'll stay like that. No guarantee though although you would have to think it would be index linked in some other way.

So with a bit of luck state pension should be at the time I retire the equivalent of 8K in todays money. And everyone gets this (if they have paid enough NI contributions) regardless of private arrangements? I must be really naive as I am quite shocked it is that much, although I appreciate those still having to pay rent its not quite so attractive and it still needs topping it, but not to the extent I was imagining.

Will update once I get my private pension figures for further advice what to do next.

Thank you all.

Silvertabby

“ The value isn't frozen. The State pension currently benefits from the triple lock so it should keep up in real terms. Hopefully it'll stay like that. No guarantee though although you would have to think it would be index linked in some other way.
Originally posted by robin61 ”

So with a bit of luck state pension should be at the time I retire the equivalent of 8K in todays money. And everyone gets this (if they have paid enough NI contributions) regardless of private arrangements? I must be really naive as I am quite shocked it is that much, although I appreciate those still having to pay rent its not quite so attractive and it still needs topping it, but not to the extent I was imagining.

Will update once I get my private pension figures for further advice what to do next. Posted by iamumtoone

Yes, post transitional arrangements, and subject to number of years of NI contributions, the idea is that everyone will get £8K State pension.

This may be more than you were expecting, but it's not enough to live on comfortably.

iammumtoone

Silvertabby wrote: »

This may be more than you were expecting, but it's not enough to live on comfortably.

Yes I appreciate that and I still want/need to do something about it as I want to enjoy my retirement not struggle. However will a small top up (which I am hoping I have nearly achieved with my current private pensions) it is (just) enough to survive on so I can stop worrying and concentrate on any extra I pay in being for my enjoyment rather than living.

iammumtoone

I have been reading the MSE links above. I contracted my pension out (I was recommended to do this at the time), according to the links that means I don't get the full 159.55, so how do I find out what I will actually get. Hopefully my contracted out part will make up the difference.

Should I contract back in, it that even possible?

molerat

Contracting out ended in 2016 so you need do nothing about that. If your forecast states you will receive the £155.65 subject to contributing 7 more years then that is what you will get. It should show a current figure to April 2017 and the figure you should receive at retirement, all the calculations relevant to the contracted out deductions were done when your April 2016 figure was set.

iammumtoone

I have found one of my recent pension statements

Blackrock forecast payment of £141 per year :eek: :rotfl:

I need to ring them to find out how may years contributions I paid for that amount and keep searching for other pension pots.

I worked at the same place for 16 years but in that time I think the pension was changed/moved a couple of times although Blackrock is the only one that sends me a statement every year. I am ashamed to admit I don't really know who holds my pensions, its not an excuse but I suffer from MH issues that means I do bury my head in the sand with things I don't understand, then I start to get stressed when I try to sort it so leave it, but this time I must resolve and find out exactly where I stand. Glad I started this thread as it will help with that.