Pension Professional services

RDG3000

Please excuse me if there is another thread on this !
Every year I get a pension statement and the lines that keep jumping out at me are the so called "professional services"which they charge every month when money goes it. Now the accounts where the money goes into hasn't changed in 25 years. The performance on these is not great at all and its only as you get older that you start to look. In your 20's and 30's a pension seems along way away but as I am knocking 50 years old on the door I have decided to look at it a little harder. Now there seems to be funds accounts which do much better but never in the last 25 years has any one from a pension company stated this. I pay each month for "professional services" but have to wonder exactly what I am paying for seeing as the accounts to which money goes in has never changed ! Is this similar to PPI ? I'm being charged for a service which I'm simply not getting. I know very little about pensions and so put my trust in the pension company.
The more however I read up on difference pots to put the money in I can't help but think this should be being done for me otherwise exactly what am I paying for each and every month on each and every transaction ?

Brynsam

Have you asked your pension provider (who is it?) these questions?

xylophone

Is this your own private pension or a pension provided through your employer?

dunstonh

What type of pension is this?

The term "professional services" is not something you associate with individual retail pensions.

And if this a pension that is 25 years old, then it is unusual for there to be explicit fees beyond the annual management charge.

Now there seems to be funds accounts which do much better

And probably some that do a lot worse.

but never in the last 25 years has any one from a pension company stated this.

Pension companies do not call you. They are not allowed to provide advice. They will follow instructions you give them or your IFA or FA gives them (if you use one).

Is this similar to PPI ?

PPi is a product. So, no, it cannot be similar to PPI.

I'm being charged for a service which I'm simply not getting. I know very little about pensions and so put my trust in the pension company.

Who is the pension company?
What type of pension is it?
Is it or was it linked to an employer?

RDG3000

It is a company pension employee contributed and company put in 3% of salary per annum. I recall one review over 10 years ago where they said things go up as well as down as the policy took a large tumble and they blamed market conditions. Aegon is the pension provider through the company, the broker is Thomas Carroll. Not sure why two companies are involved but I pay nothing to Thomas Carroll.

Tardigrade1

The easiet way to be certain is to ask Aegon for an explanation. My guess, is that this is a workaround to consultancy charging legislation. What I suspect you will find is Thomas Carroll "Advise" Aegon on how to manage the funds they in turn offer to you, and the fee Aegon pay to TC is disclosed as a sub-item of the charge you pay Aegon. It's also concievable this is an adviser charging arrangement that you signed up to, possibly many years ago - were you ever given personal advice by someone at any stage?

RDG3000

“Pension companies do not call and don’t provide advice”

What is their purpose if they take cash off you every month but provide no service or advice?

Tardigrade1

They do provide a service, it just isn't an adviced service. Historically, very poor value for money has been a theme for sure though. Things are improving, although that doesn't help the many people that remain in not-great-value schemes.

dunstonh

It is a company pension employee contributed and company put in 3% of salary per annum

In that case, it is likely that the employer is outsourcing the pension admin to a pension administrator and that is what it is for. Indeed, Thomas Carroll do that sort of thing.

Not sure why two companies are involved but I pay nothing to Thomas Carroll.

It is normal to have an administrator and a provider. Aegon is the provider.

What is their purpose if they take cash off you every month but provide no service or advice?

Who says they are not providing a service? Who does the administration? Thomas Carroll. Advice is something different. If you employed an adviser, they may well find a better alternative that removes the administrator. They may not as the administrator and employer may have negotiated good terms as the administrator is taking on admin that the provider would have done.

As a 25 year old plan, it would not be comparable to a modern day plan in respect of charges. If you dont like a black and white TV you buy a new TV. If you dont like an old fashioned pension then buy a new one.

RDG3000

No advice given at all! Advised to enroll when I joined the company as the company put in 3% of salary. Never been given one ounce of advise on pensions. Speaking to the other employees we all seem to be in the same group of funds and no one else has seen head nor tail of the pension provider. I shall be asking the powers that be for a pension meeting !

RDG3000

The black and white tv against a colour...how is this comparable? If I pay you for professional service each month and don’t get any then surely the ownus is on you to provide advise moving forward?