Change of Workplace Pension Provider

josecc

Morning all

My company has changed my workplace pension provider 3 months ago from Aviva to Aon.

Initially I've been placed into the Management Core Retirement Pathway 2049-2051 fund.

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?
Without naming them all which I can do in a later post if required, the different types of funds are Multi-Asset, Equity, Fixed Interest or Cash.

For info, aged 38 and planning to retire aged 60-62.

Marcon

josecc said:

Morning all

My company has changed my workplace pension provider 3 months ago from Aviva to Aon.

Initially I've been placed into the Management Core Retirement Pathway 2049-2051 fund.

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?
Without naming them all which I can do in a later post if required, the different types of funds are Multi-Asset, Equity, Fixed Interest or Cash.

For info, aged 38 and planning to retire aged 60-62.

'Better' depends on what you're looking for - and that is going to be closely allied to your attitude to risk, especially in relation to potential volatility of fund performance.

In an ideal world...but the world isn't ideal, so what are you looking for, given you have around a quarter of a century to go before you plan to start accessing this pension? What is it about your current fund that you feel needs to be 'improved': https://www.aegon.co.uk/content/dam/auk/assets/publication/fund-factsheet/aon_bwfy721.pdf

josecc

Marcon said:

josecc said:

Morning all

My company has changed my workplace pension provider 3 months ago from Aviva to Aon.

Initially I've been placed into the Management Core Retirement Pathway 2049-2051 fund.

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?
Without naming them all which I can do in a later post if required, the different types of funds are Multi-Asset, Equity, Fixed Interest or Cash.

For info, aged 38 and planning to retire aged 60-62.

'Better' depends on what you're looking for - and that is going to be closely allied to your attitude to risk, especially in relation to potential volatility of fund performance.

In an ideal world...but the world isn't ideal, so what are you looking for, given you have around a quarter of a century to go before you plan to start accessing this pension? What is it about your current fund that you feel needs to be 'improved': https://www.aegon.co.uk/content/dam/auk/assets/publication/fund-factsheet/aon_bwfy721.pdf

Thanks for the reply.

As I am still a good bit away from retirement I am happy to choose a fund that is on the high side of risk.

Are most funds down around 8% in 2025?

I am looking to choose what would be seen as the best fund for me at my age with my attitude to higher risk as I believe the default fund I've been put on may not be the best one for me at this moment in time.

crv1963

josecc said:

Morning all

My company has changed my workplace pension provider 3 months ago from Aviva to Aon.

Initially I've been placed into the Management Core Retirement Pathway 2049-2051 fund.

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?
Without naming them all which I can do in a later post if required, the different types of funds are Multi-Asset, Equity, Fixed Interest or Cash.

For info, aged 38 and planning to retire aged 60-62.

I have neither the skills nor competence to comment on any individual funds. However I would offer the same advice I gave my wife and my sons- just go 100% global fund equities and forget about it until you're about a decade from retirement then review.

Markets crash and rise and fall on an irregular basis and the only certainty is that this is what they will do. Timing the market is either for very clever people or fools. When it's down your getting more shares for your money, when it rises you buy less but those you already hold increase your fund size.

The recent falls are not even very large in the scheme of things, monitoring daily/ weekly or monthly can drive you mad!

The best thing you could do is see if you can get your employer to match any increase in contributions from you. Some do, some don't, my youngest got his employer to match his 10% contributions, my oldest was simply told no. It is worth asking though!

DRS1

josecc said:

Marcon said:

josecc said:

Morning all

My company has changed my workplace pension provider 3 months ago from Aviva to Aon.

Initially I've been placed into the Management Core Retirement Pathway 2049-2051 fund.

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?
Without naming them all which I can do in a later post if required, the different types of funds are Multi-Asset, Equity, Fixed Interest or Cash.

For info, aged 38 and planning to retire aged 60-62.

'Better' depends on what you're looking for - and that is going to be closely allied to your attitude to risk, especially in relation to potential volatility of fund performance.

In an ideal world...but the world isn't ideal, so what are you looking for, given you have around a quarter of a century to go before you plan to start accessing this pension? What is it about your current fund that you feel needs to be 'improved': https://www.aegon.co.uk/content/dam/auk/assets/publication/fund-factsheet/aon_bwfy721.pdf

Thanks for the reply.

As I am still a good bit away from retirement I am happy to choose a fund that is on the high side of risk.

Are most funds down around 8% in 2025?

I am looking to choose what would be seen as the best fund for me at my age with my attitude to higher risk as I believe the default fund I've been put on may not be the best one for me at this moment in time.

It is not unusual.  Read some threads such as Timing the market? — MoneySavingExpert Forum

Performance over three months is not a good guide to performance over 30 years.

The thing I notice from the fact sheet is that this fund seems to underperform its benchmark.

Also it uses a lot of words like Dynamic which don't mean much to me.  Having said that it looks like a lifestyle fund which moves you to bonds and gilts as you get older but initially may well have you in the sort of global equity thing mentioned up above.  If you stay with it you can treat it as a fire and forget investment where all the agonising about when to get out of the equity markets has been done for you.

dunstonh

Firstly my pension fund has lost 8-9% in the last 3 months. Does this seem right? I do know it can go up and dow

US equities are down 10%, which is a minor fall that you will see again and again.  It's not even classed as a crash until you go through 20% down.

Secondly I have 25 funds to choose from. Does anyone have any experience with Aon funds that could maybe suggest a better fund to be with?

What is wrong with the one you have?   It sounds like its high equity which is good if you are young and paying in monthly and the name suggests it will reduce risk as you get closer to retirement.

Are most funds down around 8% in 2025?

No.  Europe is up.   US is down.  So, it depends on what you invest in during that very very short term period.    However, for multi-asset and diverse portfolios, yes, everyone would be down.  The degree of loss would depend on how defensive they are.

Albermarle

The degree of loss would depend on how defensive they are.

OP - For example my pension pots are down about 3 % on average, but I am retired and have no need to take too much risk to get high growth. 

gm0

Your fact sheet for someone >20 years out shows 90% in a growth fund.  Although not on the sheet it is mostly global equities more than likely and the 18% for 2024 (12 month trailing) suggests that is likely given how 2024 went for whole of market.

You could - as someone so young.  Be even more aggressive and save in 100% equtiies but the difference is relatively small from where you are.  Some people do.  But you maximise your volatility (for passive hold the index style anyway).   But you have time to buy the dips month and year by year. 

If you are hoping for fund a vs fund b is better recommendations that are active and smaller stock selections vs the whole market to pick long term winners then I am afraid you will be disappointed. 

At one time you would have found forum advocates for particular funds and fund managers.  Scottish Mortgage Trust (SMT) as a trust example and say LindesellTrain etc.  At times when they were concentrated in countries and winners.  And momentum from inflows was a tail wind.  For a long time - mega cap, US tech was an overperforming bet.  And then at times - it wasn't.  The massive drawdowns on concentrated US tech funds ensued.  Anything with a load of Tesla in it right now.

SMT wrote off a huge investment in Northvolt (the battery green europe alternative to china) recently.  And has been out of favour (with some people).  The shine has come off some of the UK star active fund managers as well.  That's before you get to the Woodford related difficulties with illiquid pe investments mixed in with equities.

Nobody has a good angle on which tilt will win the next five years and if a given active fund manage will hold onto their contrarian bets long enough.

For passive type investments you can ask yourself if this is aggressive enough at 9/10. And if it is efficient.  Does it seem to track net fees on historic performance.  And finally ask yourself if you want the automated derisking features as you get older.  They will have funds that stay where they are put.  As well as lifestylers like this which progressively sell equities for fixed interest.