Pension Transfer. Time Out of Market.

barnstar2077

Notepad_Phil said:

barnstar2077 said:

Thrugelmir said:

barnstar2077 said:

Is it possible to lose large sums of money during this process, or am I getting it all wrong?

Markets and currencies constantly move.  If you hold individual shares and liquidate them. There's two sets of dealing charges, possibly stamp duty or transaction charges , plus the share spread to be factored in.  As a result could be an expensive exercise. Choosing the provider at the outset should be given the same thought as where to invest. 

Although my example was about SIPPs, it is not that easy if you are transfering from a works pension though. 

If the works pension is a DC type then you can check to see whether you can do the transfer in multiple segments. That's how I did a transfer from my Aviva DC pension to my SIPP - it took a bit longer to get everything through, but markets can sometimes move very quickly and so I was quite happy to average out the wins and losses from multiple transfers.

As my work pension is with Aviva this is really helpful, thank you!  I won't be transferring the work pension until I am near retiring, which is currently a long way off, but I like to get things organised in my head first.  I definitely am in the camp of over thinking things, which is why the internet, and these forums, are so invaluable to me as a tool to get things straight in my head about what I should do and what might happen etc.

Albermarle

barnstar2077 said:

Notepad_Phil said:

barnstar2077 said:

Thrugelmir said:

barnstar2077 said:

Is it possible to lose large sums of money during this process, or am I getting it all wrong?

Markets and currencies constantly move.  If you hold individual shares and liquidate them. There's two sets of dealing charges, possibly stamp duty or transaction charges , plus the share spread to be factored in.  As a result could be an expensive exercise. Choosing the provider at the outset should be given the same thought as where to invest. 

Although my example was about SIPPs, it is not that easy if you are transfering from a works pension though. 

If the works pension is a DC type then you can check to see whether you can do the transfer in multiple segments. That's how I did a transfer from my Aviva DC pension to my SIPP - it took a bit longer to get everything through, but markets can sometimes move very quickly and so I was quite happy to average out the wins and losses from multiple transfers.

As my work pension is with Aviva this is really helpful, thank you!  I won't be transferring the work pension until I am near retiring, which is currently a long way off, but I like to get things organised in my head first.  I definitely am in the camp of over thinking things, which is why the internet, and these forums, are so invaluable to me as a tool to get things straight in my head about what I should do and what might happen etc.

From earlier threads it has been commented that Aviva are one of the fastest for transfers out as long as the receiving scheme is also on the Origo system , which is an electronic system that speeds the transfers up . 

ian16527

I have just transferred from SW to Fidelity - it was a cash transfer and took around 20 days. All online.
But I now want to transfer a previous DC works pension that it held by Mercer. I've had to print off a form and post back to Fidelity and they are estimating 6 to 8 weeks.

barnstar2077

For anyone that is curious.  The transfer from HL to VG took six weeks.  The delay was because of HL.   They didn't even look at it for five weeks.

westv

Clearly the transfer side of pensions is still in a bygone era of steam trains and ther Home Service on radio.

Thrugelmir

westv said:

Clearly the transfer side of pensions is still in a bygone era of steam trains and ther Home Service on radio.

Or constrained by WFH.  Great for employees less so for customers. 

westv

Thrugelmir said:

westv said:

Clearly the transfer side of pensions is still in a bygone era of steam trains and ther Home Service on radio.

Or constrained by WFH.  Great for employees less so for customers. 

Transfers transfers could slow before 2020
From 2018:-
https://moneyweek.com/487573/painfully-slow-pension-transfers

"However, while electronic transfer technologies should mean most such transfers can be completed within a fortnight, many of the industry's largest pension administrators still rely on paper-based systems and the postal service. As a result, transfers involving one of these providers routinely take as long as three months. The average transfer takes 36 days, according to research published last year by robo-adviser Nutmeg, but in the worst cases, savers are being forced to wait more than six months."

Marcon

barnstar2077 said:

For anyone that is curious.  The transfer from HL to VG took six weeks.  The delay was because of HL.   They didn't even look at it for five weeks.

If you choose to transfer at the height of a pandemic, is that really a surprise? HL will be dealing with much larger numbers of enquiries/requests for action with staff working from home, having to learn new processes and procedures (something which is ongoing for all firms) and possibly having staff off sick or otherwise unable to work.

barnstar2077

Yeah, I thought the same too, but a quick google says they have been pretty slow for quite some time.  Thanks for your input anyway. 

foofi22

To be fair the transfer only took a week (once HL eventually started their end) - so you were out of the market for less than a week.