Pension Newbie

chippenhamged

Hi
I currently have 4 pensions:

a. Previous company workplace pension. Monthly contribution £50
b. NEST pension. Monthly contribution £100
c. Current company workplace pension. Monthly contribution £90
d. Military pension, which I have had commuted lumpsum 5 years ago and receive a monthly amount.

Obviously I want to get the best out of my pensions and have the most amount available for a monthly payout when I do finally retire.

Am considering amalgamating pensions a and b into c but don't have a clue on whether this is right or not.

Is there such a thing as an idependant pensions financial advisor that is free?

Can anyone advise on any of the above?

Appreciate honest/sensible opinions.

Thank you

dmelife

Ask each provider for the total charges you are paying in each pension. Also ask them for the range of funds available. If your existing employers pension has the better range of funds and/or lower charges, then you may consider consolidation to that scheme. However, there is nothing wrong with keeping multiple pensions so long as you keep track of each one.

You won’t get free ‘advice’ from an IFA but the first meeting is normally free and you may get some ‘guidance’ on what to do.

xylophone

Where did the NEST pension come from?

Have you enquired of your current pension provider whether they would accept a transfer in of A and B?

Have you compared the charges /fund choices on A and B with those on C?

Have you obtained a state pension statement?

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

dunstonh

Is there such a thing as an idependant pensions financial advisor that is free?

Yes, there are IFAs. No they are not free. Sadly, they have bills to pay and families to feed. So, they need an income just like you do.

Unless the value is over around £50k in total, you probably dont need an IFA and just moving NEST (which we know isnt good value on contributions) and the other to your current workplace scheme will probably be fine. It may not be the absolute best option but its unlikely to be damaging.

Alexland

Does your current company offer salary sacrifice to save both tax and NI as if so it might be more effective to contribute into than the other pensions.

chippenhamged

Thank you all for your responses and kind words. I will certainly look into it further.

Albermarle

Perhaps more important than the consolidation of the pensions , is the amount you contribute each month overall.
Without knowing your age/circumstances etc it is difficult to comment exactly , but in general most people are not contributing enough. The amount of money that needs to be built up is often underestimated .