Which pension is best to over pay into?

bjorn_toby_wilde

I think you can put yourself in a good position to retire early as you have a mix of defined benefit and defined contribution options.

We retired early with a similar mix, but my wife has LGPS and NHS pensions, whereas mine are entirely private sector.  The big plus with her LGPS pension is that it keeps pace with inflation while my DB schemes are capped and the early parts have only discretionary increases.

If I were in your shoes (and this is opinion, not advice) I would look at how much it would cost to buy the extra pension in the LGPS first. It worked out as good value for us and it provides an index linked guaranteed base. The downside is the commutation factor on the lump sum so if you need one, you could take it from the DC pension by preference.

The DC pension could then be used to give you the flexibility to retire early or in stages.

Don’t forget your state pension. Get a forecast on Gov.uk and factor that into your plans.