Consolidating pensions advice needed

isayhello

I have 2 work pensions, one is a prudential stakeholder currently, it is a plan where I get to choose the funds I invest in and there is a broad range of them.

The old work pension was with Aegon and moved to Retiready, I had just left the money in there for a few years but investigated it properly recently and saw the money was invested in something called BlackRock 50/50 equity index - my only options for change are 5 ready made lifestyle options.

It seems to me that moving the old pension into the new scheme would be better as it's less hassle than maintaining 2 separate accounts and also the prudential provides more investment choices.

Is there anything obvious I'm missing before making the transfer, I can't find much information on Retiready about their charges for transferring out but I will call them to check.

drumtochty

As you are not retiring will they charge you a fee to move the money.

isayhello

drumtochty wrote: »

As you are not retiring will they charge you a fee to move the money.

I'm not sure, I can't find any info on the Retiready platform about this which is clear, I will phone them tomorrow I think to ask.

Even if the charge is say upto £100 it's probably worth it in the long term for ease of managing and fund options. I've just never done a transfer so don't know whether this is a wise or bad move.

ffacoffipawb

isayhello wrote: »

I'm not sure, I can't find any info on the Retiready platform about this which is clear, I will phone them tomorrow I think to ask.

Even if the charge is say upto £100 it's probably worth it in the long term for ease of managing and fund options. I've just never done a transfer so don't know whether this is a wise or bad move.

If you are 55 or older any transfer charge is capped at 1% of the fund value for a unit linked pension.

cfw1994

isayhello wrote: »

I'm not sure, I can't find any info on the Retiready platform about this which is clear, I will phone them tomorrow I think to ask.

Even if the charge is say upto £100 it's probably worth it in the long term for ease of managing and fund options. I've just never done a transfer so don't know whether this is a wise or bad move.

Not sure anyone here can tell you it is "wise": you say it is in "BlackRock 50/50 equity index" - the Global one?
If so, the 'annualised returns' look pretty decent to me (around the 9-11% depending what term you look at). I'd be happy with that. Maybe just leave it: how well is your current one performing with the funds you have?

The mechanics of moving it ought to be easy - if you call them ask if they work with Origo Options - I believe most major providers do - if they do, then actually moving it should be VERY easy.

isayhello

ffacoffipawb wrote: »

If you are 55 or older any transfer charge is capped at 1% of the fund value for a unit linked pension.

Thanks am under 55.

isayhello

cfw1994 wrote: »

Not sure anyone here can tell you it is "wise": you say it is in "BlackRock 50/50 equity index" - the Global one?
If so, the 'annualised returns' look pretty decent to me (around the 9-11% depending what term you look at). I'd be happy with that. Maybe just leave it: how well is your current one performing with the funds you have?

So it was in that fund when the original Aegon platform switched to Retiready, now it's being moved to one of their lifestyle option funds, of which there are 5 choices based on risk.

I've received the paperwork from prudential to make the transfer so it seems straightforward, not sure how long it will take though, maybe someone can shed some light?

Based on the benefit of seeing all the funds in one account and the more options, I 'think' it's better to transfer.

Albermarle

Although you have checked the transfer charges , you do not have seemed to have checked the actual ongoing charges for the two pensions.
Normally there is an annual % charge by the pension provider ( Pru , Aegon etc ) and then each fund you are invested in has a separate charge . Simple , passive funds have a lower charge , than funds which are actively managed have a higher charge, so not so easy to compare like with like.
To complicate things sometimes there is just one charge to cover both the provider and the funds.
It maybe there will be a discount if the amount in the pension reaches a certain level , which could be a deciding factor of which way to go.
The paperwork can be confusing so best to call them and ask directly what their charging structure is.
Normally you should be aiming to pay around 1 % nowadays . If you have a small pot and the fund is actively managed it will be more. If you have a large pot and in a low cost fund it should be less.

Clive_Woody

Albermarle wrote: »

Although you have checked the transfer charges , you do not have seemed to have checked the actual ongoing charges for the two pensions.
Normally there is an annual % charge by the pension provider ( Pru , Aegon etc ) and then each fund you are invested in has a separate charge . Simple , passive funds have a lower charge , than funds which are actively managed have a higher charge, so not so easy to compare like with like.
To complicate things sometimes there is just one charge to cover both the provider and the funds.
It maybe there will be a discount if the amount in the pension reaches a certain level , which could be a deciding factor of which way to go.
The paperwork can be confusing so best to call them and ask directly what their charging structure is.
Normally you should be aiming to pay around 1 % nowadays . If you have a small pot and the fund is actively managed it will be more. If you have a large pot and in a low cost fund it should be less.

Add to that there may also be an employer negotiated discount. My pension pot with Retire Ready has an annual management fee of 0.21% but I have seen various other higher charges quoted.

I have a fund charge of 0.05% which is for the "Aegon Workplace Default (ARC)" - which seems to be a lifestyling type fund....but I probably should do more research to understand exactly what it is and when things change. At the moment it seems to be growing quite nicely and the charges are reasonably low so I am not inclined to move from RR but I guess others may see it differently depending on what they are being charged.

isayhello

Clive_Woody wrote: »

Add to that there may also be an employer negotiated discount. My pension pot with Retire Ready has an annual management fee of 0.21% but I have seen various other higher charges quoted.

I have a fund charge of 0.05% which is for the "Aegon Workplace Default (ARC)" - which seems to be a lifestyling type fund....but I probably should do more research to understand exactly what it is and when things change. At the moment it seems to be growing quite nicely and the charges are reasonably low so I am not inclined to move from RR but I guess others may see it differently depending on what they are being charged.

I will try to look at my statements this weekend to see if I can work out the charges and compare against both platforms.

I think it just feels as if it would be easier if the whole pot was in 1 platform with a larger choice of funds for extra freedom even if it does end up costing a few pounds extra per month.

Albermarle

even if it does end up costing a few pounds extra per month.

There are lots of available calculations to show that losing that extra few Pounds a month to charges can have a disproportionate effect on the end result 30 years down the line.
You should be careful not to let the natural urge to keep things tidy , affect the bottom line too much,