Pensionbee decimates my pension pot.

Krakkkers

They are supposed to know more than the customer, what is the point of them if they don't?
I make more money on AIM shorting than investing.

Rtayl306

bostonerimus said:

There are certainly many scams and abuses present in the financial services industry, but the experience of the OP with Pensionbee seems to be more down to expectations not lining up with realities. When people make 10% I never see complaints, but lose 10% and the heavens are falling…one goes along with the other. There should be regulation of the pension industry and safeguards put in place, but at some point personal responsibility must be taken for your actions. I’m very left wing and generally pro consumer rights, but that does not lessen by belief that the world runs on taking responsibility for your actions or indeed inaction. In this case the OP needs to take more responsibility and learn from the experience and know that many are in a very similar boat

So what do I pay them a commission for,  to sit on there hands & say not my problem, these people need to take some responsibility 

Rtayl306

Krakkkers said:

What is the point of letting professionals look after your money if they are not going to outperform the market?
If markets are falling them maybe managers of funds should sell or short, not just sit on their hands and say its nothing to do with them.

Thank you for the positive response, I bet these fund managers are sitting pretty throughout all this & there pensions/investments are still making  a tidy sum.

QrizB

Krakkkers said:

What is the point of letting professionals look after your money if they are not going to outperform the market?

RTayl306 is not paying anyone to manage their money. Pensionbee are providing a service that allows their customers, including the OP, to manage their own money.

And as a general rule, professionals don't outperform the markets.

If markets are falling them maybe managers of funds should sell or short, not just sit on their hands and say its nothing to do with them.

The OP is his own fund manager. Pensionbee offer a choice of funds and the account owner decides, for themselves, where to invest them. That's how Pensionbee (and all the other self-invest pension businesses) work.

If the OP wanted a managed service, they could have chosen one.

Looking at your own thread, you have £195k in cash. I imagine you're not expecting your bank to manage that for you, moving it from one savings account to another if interest rates change; that's for you to do. Well it's the same for the OP and Pensionbee.

Rtayl306 said:

Thank you for the positive response, I bet these fund managers are sitting pretty throughout all this & there pensions/investments are still making  a tidy sum.

At the risk of repeating myself, when using Pensionbee you are your own fund manager. Pensionbee are not going to buy and sell your investments on your behalf. If you want someone to do that for you, you will need to look elsewhere.

Krakkkers

I am not familiar with Pensionbee, i just know when i give my money to a professional they pretty much always let me down.

grumiofoundation

Rtayl306 said:

bostonerimus said:

There are certainly many scams and abuses present in the financial services industry, but the experience of the OP with Pensionbee seems to be more down to expectations not lining up with realities. When people make 10% I never see complaints, but lose 10% and the heavens are falling…one goes along with the other. There should be regulation of the pension industry and safeguards put in place, but at some point personal responsibility must be taken for your actions. I’m very left wing and generally pro consumer rights, but that does not lessen by belief that the world runs on taking responsibility for your actions or indeed inaction. In this case the OP needs to take more responsibility and learn from the experience and know that many are in a very similar boat

So what do I pay them a commission for,  to sit on there hands & say not my problem, these people need to take some responsibility 

Have you read the comments explaining what the offering from Pensionbee actually is? (or looked at their webiste)

You seem to be expecting something they never claimed they offered. 

Pensionbee aren't making investment choices, the investments are managed by Legal and general, Blackrock etc (depending on the investment you chose). 

The responsibility for the investment choices with pensionbee lies with you - what investments did you choose?

Rtayl306

grumiofoundation said:

Rtayl306 said:

bostonerimus said:

There are certainly many scams and abuses present in the financial services industry, but the experience of the OP with Pensionbee seems to be more down to expectations not lining up with realities. When people make 10% I never see complaints, but lose 10% and the heavens are falling…one goes along with the other. There should be regulation of the pension industry and safeguards put in place, but at some point personal responsibility must be taken for your actions. I’m very left wing and generally pro consumer rights, but that does not lessen by belief that the world runs on taking responsibility for your actions or indeed inaction. In this case the OP needs to take more responsibility and learn from the experience and know that many are in a very similar boat

So what do I pay them a commission for,  to sit on there hands & say not my problem, these people need to take some responsibility 

Have you read the comments explaining what the offering from Pensionbee actually is? (or looked at their webiste)

You seem to be expecting something they never claimed they offered. 

Pensionbee aren't making investment choices, the investments are managed by Legal and general, Blackrock etc (depending on the investment you chose). 

The responsibility for the investment choices with pensionbee lies with you - what investments did you choose?

I chose the 4plus plan after moving from the tailored plan.  I was told by pensionbee that they aim to get me 4 percent a year growth, instead they loose 14 grand. I'm just a ground worker on minimum wage, so you people who are slagging me off as thick, try helping people like me  I can't afford the prices that these financial consultants charge, so I trust what these pension companies tell me. You all sit there saying this that and the other.

QrizB

Rtayl306 said:

grumiofoundation said:

The responsibility for the investment choices with pensionbee lies with you - what investments did you choose?

I chose the 4plus plan after moving from the tailored plan.

OK, here's the factsheet:

https://www.ssga.com/library-content/products/factsheets/mf/emea/factsheet-emea-en_gb-gb00bg217453.pdf

From the start of August last year to the end of July this year, it lost 1.38%.

Looking at the factsheet, the recommended minimum investment period is five years (and over five years it is just short of its objective, with a return of just under 4% vs. its benchmark index).

When did you switch to this fund, recently or a few years ago?

Edit: from Morningstar it seems to have lost another 3% since the end of July, which is disappointing. That's still only 4.4%, not the 9% that you say you've lost.

Rtayl306

QrizB said:

Rtayl306 said:

grumiofoundation said:

The responsibility for the investment choices with pensionbee lies with you - what investments did you choose?

I chose the 4plus plan after moving from the tailored plan.

OK, here's the factsheet:

https://www.ssga.com/library-content/products/factsheets/mf/emea/factsheet-emea-en_gb-gb00bg217453.pdf

From the start of August last year to the end of July this year, it lost 1.38%.

Looking at the factsheet, the recommended minimum investment period is five years (and over five years it is just short of its objective, with a return of just under 4% vs. its benchmark index).

When did you switch to this fund, recently or a few years ago?

Edit: from Morningstar it seems to have lost another 3% since the end of July, which is disappointing. That's still only 4.4%, not the 9% that you say you've lost.

I was with the tailored plan from Dec 21 till around April.

Alice_Holt

Managing a defined contribution pension pot in the years approaching retirement, and in retirement is (IMO) a complicated proposition. 
(Particularly as only a small percentage of the population take an informed interest in pensions and personal finance. Most people lead busy, stressed lives, and may have more immediate concerns to worry about.)

I don't think sites like moneyhelper, etc and Pension Wise are sufficient. Personal finance education provision seems poor. 
All this is not helped by incidents like British Steel pension scandal, shocking failings at the FCA , and the seemingly endless proliferation of financial scammers.

Can we expecting someone in their 70's and 80's (with possibly declining mental sharpness) to manage drawdown and be their own fund manager ?

I suspect those in leadership positions making pension policy - MP's, Bank of England employees, FCA executives, and senior Fund Managers, etc are likely to have defined benefit pension schemes (or non-contributory pension plans) in place to do the heavy lifting for their own retirement.