Pensions with Previous Employers

SilentValley

Hello,

New Forum Member - Apologies if I’ve posted this in the wrong place or if my questions have been answered before (couldn’t find a previous thread).

Does anyone know how I can go about locating pension pots I have contributed to with previous employers?

I’ve been in full time employment for approximately 10 years and within in this period, I’ve had 4/5 jobs (administration roles, whilst studying as a mature student). I am based in Northern Ireland.

If anyone has had any experience of this, I’d really appreciate guidance on where I should start. I see there is a government database I can use to find out which pension providers are used by certain companies but am I best contacting my ex-employers HR Department direct? If so, what information would I need to provide?

An additional question, if I have a number of pots, what happens when I locate them? Am I given the option to cash out and put the money into savings or to consolidate with my current employers pension scheme?

There is a lot of information online but my head is swimming and it would be great to get a consolidated guidance.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Dox

If you aren't routinely getting information each year, sounds as if you might have moved house and not told the relevant parties?

You can use the (free) tracing service: https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details

Or you can contact your previous employers, giving your NI number, date of birth, full name and address (including any previous address which might have been current when you worked for them) and approximate dates of employment if you can remember them.

Unless you are aged at least 55, you can't cash in your pension benefits (and if anyone helpfully offers to do so, steer well clear - the tax charge on such a 'liberation' will more or less wipe out your pension after the liberators have taken their fees).

Find out what you've got before trying to take any decisions. Given the number of short term jobs you've had, you may find you don't have quite as many pensions as you think!

xylophone

If you aren't routinely getting information each year, sounds as if you might have moved house and not told the relevant parties?

Some schemes do not provide statements each year for deferred pensioners so best to check.

Dox

xylophone wrote: »

Some schemes do not provide statements each year for deferred pensioners so best to check.

Annual statements are mandatory for defined contribution schemes.

Annual Summary Funding Statements are mandatory for defined benefit schemes.

So either way, OP should have been hearing from any previous schemes each year.

xylophone

When I had a deferred DB pension with a certain scheme (admittedly some years back), I received neither statement nor annual funding statement....perhaps things have tightened up since.

Tardigrade1

Best think to do is to get in touch with your previous employers pensions departments, and provide the information they ask for (probably dates employed and NI number). Consolidation is probably a good idea for DC money (look at the charges), and probably a bad idea for DB scheme money.

Dox

xylophone wrote: »

When I had a deferred DB pension with a certain scheme (admittedly some years back), I received neither statement nor annual funding statement....perhaps things have tightened up since.

It was a requirement introduced by the Occupational Pension Schemes (Scheme Funding) Regulations 2005, so you might have missed out on yet another bit of fairly useless paperwork!

enthusiasticsaver

I don't get sent anything from my deferred benefit scheme but I do have online access to benefit statements so maybe they think that is sufficient. I would get in touch with your employers HR departments and quote dates of employment and any payroll or NI number.

As a PP said you can transfer if they will let you and if it is a DC pension (defined contribution). If it is a DB (defined benefit) scheme it will not usually be a good idea to transfer out and they may not let you anyway.