Lifesight Pension - any good?

dunstonh

@dunstonh - do you mean better investment options/choices or something else? In general I would have nothing against paying an IFA for investment management and advice but am the moment I don't really see that it would be worthwhile to me. That might change in time if my pot doesn't keep performing of course.

Lifesight is a restricted product with restricted investment options.   IFA platforms (and DIY platforms) are mostly whole of market and have full functionality.   So, by default, those options will be better in terms of what they offer and how you can structure them.

Lifesight charges vary with employer.  So, you would need to know those before you start.

arthur_fowler

I have had dealings with them including transferring in (painless) and taking money out to buy an annuity (slow and not very user friendly). I found their call centre hopeless but when I finally got through to someone in 2nd line they were very helpful. 
I now have a smaller sum with them that I will stop contributing to I'm a couple of months when I retire. I haven't decided whether to move or leave it with them yet.

Albermarle

GenX0212 said:

dunstonh said:

" As an IFA I have better options with more control that Lifesight do not give."   

@dunstonh - do you mean better investment options/choices or something else? In general I would have nothing against paying an IFA for investment management and advice but am the moment I don't really see that it would be worthwhile to me. That might change in time if my pot doesn't keep performing of course.

I have a medium risk approach with 2/3 of my fund in LifeSight Diversified Growth and 1/3 in LifeSight Equity.  Across 18 months I have achieved £100k of actual growth from a starting pot of £360k with £60k of additional contributions made, current value £520k all whilst paying very low investment charges. 

Realistically do you think you would you be able to advise and achieve better results without increasing my risk?

It's a genuine question and I hope no offence is taken at me asking it.

It is a common misconception that an IFA's job is to get you more growth.
Their job is to map out a financial plan that suits you and your circumstances. So with appropriate investments and tax planning.
Do not forget that the majority of people are clueless in this area, or even worse labouring under major misconceptions, or just have their head in the sand.
Obviously an IFA will be of more benefit to those people, rather than someone who has some reasonable idea of what they are doing.

GenX0212

Albermarle said:

GenX0212 said:

dunstonh said:

" As an IFA I have better options with more control that Lifesight do not give."   

@dunstonh - do you mean better investment options/choices or something else? In general I would have nothing against paying an IFA for investment management and advice but am the moment I don't really see that it would be worthwhile to me. That might change in time if my pot doesn't keep performing of course.

I have a medium risk approach with 2/3 of my fund in LifeSight Diversified Growth and 1/3 in LifeSight Equity.  Across 18 months I have achieved £100k of actual growth from a starting pot of £360k with £60k of additional contributions made, current value £520k all whilst paying very low investment charges. 

Realistically do you think you would you be able to advise and achieve better results without increasing my risk?

It's a genuine question and I hope no offence is taken at me asking it.

It is a common misconception that an IFA's job is to get you more growth.
Their job is to map out a financial plan that suits you and your circumstances. So with appropriate investments and tax planning.
Do not forget that the majority of people are clueless in this area, or even worse labouring under major misconceptions, or just have their head in the sand.
Obviously an IFA will be of more benefit to those people, rather than someone who has some reasonable idea of what they are doing.

I'm not trying to knock IFA's. I understand that no IFA could ever possibly guarantee to make their customers money. The advice that the likes of yourself @albermarle, @dunstonh and many others give for free on this very forum is truly appreciated. Due to this board I'm fairly clear on what I want to achieve, how to ensure I don't making basic fundamentals errors, how to maximise tax efficiency etc. The bit I absolutely dont have is the knowledge / expertise to choose my own investments myself, to choose the right mix of investments balancing risk and reward. Hence my current default position of sticking with the LifeSight managed funds. I suppose I was trying to ask why would I move away from LifeSight at the current time?

Apologies also to the OP for hijacking's the thread! Most of the negatives regarding LifeSight seems to relate to experiences moving money in or out whereas I think the original question was has anyone got experience of using LifeSight in drawdown?

green.lander_2

Hi, i have have a similar sized fund over 14 years with my current employer and at 64 i am now looking to exit full time employment and moving this fund elsewhere, taking tax free cash and then entering drawdown. The reason i have more choose and control. My personal view is that Lifesight does the job but its has taken months to plan and execute with  multiple phones calls and resubmitting of forms that should have been much simpler. Maybe i was unlucky or unprepared but its been painful and glad it will soon be in a more mainstream platform. 

OliverLacon

OP here. The thread has gone slightly off topic with a discussion about the benefits of consulting an IFA. Interesting conversation nevertheless. Thank you to all who have replied though. To get us back on theme, I'll recap my original query.

1. I'm looking for comments from folk who have first hand experience with Lifesight and whether that is good or bad. I'm particularly interested to hear from those who are in the draw down phase and also those transferring out to another provider.  The reviews  on Trustadvisor are mainly bed ones - but as dunstanh pointed out, that may be unrepresentative of the majority of customers. People with bad experiences post reviews, people with average to good experiences are less likely to think of heading to TrustAvisor to post a comment.

2. I was asking for peoples views about whether I should remain in Lifesight to protect my enhanced tax free lump sum. It was pointed (by FireDreamer) out that the amount I'm likely to save in tax is rather insignificant compared to the total pot size - I tend to agree with that.

dunstonh

Most of the negatives regarding LifeSight seems to relate to experiences moving money in or out whereas I think the original question was has anyone got experience of using LifeSight in drawdown?

I believe that they don't operate a green list for SIPP providers, ETFs or offshore funds.   So, people transferring out to a SIPP get held up by the anti-scam rules.   A SIPP, by default, will have overseas domiciled investments available to it.   And if the ceding scheme doesn't have a green list, they will automatically send it through the anti-scam process and that can add up to 6 months.    Most retail providers (Aviva, SW, Std Life etc) operate green lists but you tend to find the workplace schemes do not.

OliverLacon

Is a "green list" a list of SSIP providers that the pension provider being transferred away from trusts and notionally could fast track my funds to? If it is, perhaps I could ask Lifesight if they have one.

dunstonh

coopej4 said:

Is a "green list" a list of SSIP providers that the pension provider being transferred away from trusts and notionally could fast track my funds to? If it is, perhaps I could ask Lifesight if they have one.

Yes, it is a list as you describe but whether Lifesight will tell you if they have one and who is on it is probably unlikely.

OliverLacon

Thanks dunstanh.  I guess it would do no harm if I did ask. You may have seen my reply to a different post regarding a list of providers that Lifesight can apparently do transfers to via electronic means (rather than filling in forms). Do you think that might be the nearest I'll get to a "green list"?

These are the providers:-
SIPPDeal E-SIPP (AJ Bell)
Transact Personal Pension
Transact SIPP
PensionBee
HL SIPP
Fidelity Retail Pension Scheme

Has anyone else any experience transferring from Lifesight to any in the list? How long does it take> What issues did you have?