Financial Advice for Cashing in a DB Pension

poseidon1

It maybe just me, but I would have expected 'qualified accountants' to have a greater capacity to understand the intricacies of DB and DC pension schemes compared to the ordinary Joe/Joanna.  

Certainly, when the Lifetime allowance rules were introduced I recommended  a relative consult a Chartered Accountant to advise on what action it was possible for  him to take  to avoid breaching the limits which  were to change constantly over the years.  His accountant's  advice ensured ongoing  protection at the highest amount of £1.8 million for his DB pension,  at a time when some of his colleagues where triggering substantial LTA charges on the reduced protection thresholds from 2013/14 onwards.

As in every walk of life, there are 'switched on' well informed professionals and others not so much.  In the present case would have been best if the OP had not made so much of his 'professional credentials'.

Cobbler_tone

poseidon1 said:

It maybe just me, but I would have expected 'qualified accountants' to have a greater capacity to understand the intricacies of DB and DC pension schemes compared to the ordinary Joe/Joanna.  

As in every walk of life, there are 'switched on' well informed professionals and others not so much.  In the present case would have been best if the OP had not made so much of his 'professional credentials'.

Not really. Accountancy is a massively broad discipline. I wouldn't say they were necessarily better equipped than most other folk. Like I said, my OH is a very successful management accountant and does not have the first clue regarding pensions. If you want her to add something up, forget it without a calculator or a spreadsheet. 

The second part definitely applies...if you are going to put that out there as proof of financial understanding!

dunstonh

poseidon1 said:

It maybe just me, but I would have expected 'qualified accountants' to have a greater capacity to understand the intricacies of DB and DC pension schemes compared to the ordinary Joe/Joanna.  

Certainly, when the Lifetime allowance rules were introduced I recommended  a relative consult a Chartered Accountant to advise on what action it was possible for  him to take  to avoid breaching the limits which  were to change constantly over the years.  His accountant's  advice ensured ongoing  protection at the highest amount of £1.8 million for his DB pension,  at a time when some of his colleagues where triggering substantial LTA charges on the reduced protection thresholds from 2013/14 onwards.

As in every walk of life, there are 'switched on' well informed professionals and others not so much.  In the present case would have been best if the OP had not made so much of his 'professional credentials'.

That is extremely rare.  However, many accountants have an IFA arm or links to an IFA firm.  So, often we get a question from an accountant that we answer for them and they copy and paste it back to the client.

poseidon1

Cobbler_tone said:

poseidon1 said:

It maybe just me, but I would have expected 'qualified accountants' to have a greater capacity to understand the intricacies of DB and DC pension schemes compared to the ordinary Joe/Joanna.  

As in every walk of life, there are 'switched on' well informed professionals and others not so much.  In the present case would have been best if the OP had not made so much of his 'professional credentials'.

Not really. Accountancy is a massively broad discipline. I wouldn't say they were necessarily better equipped than most other folk. Like I said, my OH is a very successful management accountant and does not have the first clue regarding pensions. If you want her to add something up, forget it without a calculator or a spreadsheet. 

The second part definitely applies...if you are going to put that out there as proof of financial understanding!

I suppose you are right and a distinction should be drawn between private practice Chartered Accountancy practitioners ( at the higher tiers)  advising on the full spectrum of the UK  tax  system and those  employed in narrow specialisms such as local authority,  small business  accountants and the like. 

 However, I do expect all accountants to have greater than average numeracy skills which is a basic attribute  in getting one's head around some of the bewildering aspects of pensions. An innumerate accountant would be a concern for me!

Triumph13

I suppose you are right and a distinction should be drawn between private practice Chartered Accountancy practitioners ( at the higher tiers)  advising on the full spectrum of the UK  tax  system and those  employed in narrow specialisms such as local authority,  small business  accountants and the like

I would say it is much more personal tax that is the narrow specialism.  Most accountants never go anywhere near it.  I learnt far, far more about pensions from the star posters on here than I ever did in either my work, or my training as a chartered accountant.  Most of my colleagues are woefully ignorant about their pensions.  They do know how percentages work though

Cobbler_tone

poseidon1 said:

Cobbler_tone said:

poseidon1 said:

It maybe just me, but I would have expected 'qualified accountants' to have a greater capacity to understand the intricacies of DB and DC pension schemes compared to the ordinary Joe/Joanna.  

As in every walk of life, there are 'switched on' well informed professionals and others not so much.  In the present case would have been best if the OP had not made so much of his 'professional credentials'.

Not really. Accountancy is a massively broad discipline. I wouldn't say they were necessarily better equipped than most other folk. Like I said, my OH is a very successful management accountant and does not have the first clue regarding pensions. If you want her to add something up, forget it without a calculator or a spreadsheet. 

The second part definitely applies...if you are going to put that out there as proof of financial understanding!

I suppose you are right and a distinction should be drawn between private practice Chartered Accountancy practitioners ( at the higher tiers)  advising on the full spectrum of the UK  tax  system and those  employed in narrow specialisms such as local authority,  small business  accountants and the like. 

 However, I do expect all accountants to have greater than average numeracy skills which is a basic attribute  in getting one's head around some of the bewildering aspects of pensions. An innumerate accountant would be a concern for me!

I can only speak from the accountants I know and work with. My OH's role is about building relationships, working on (and costing) projects using models. Reporting on period end costs etc.
I see pensions more of a bespoke area and more about rules, procedures and process. Although they revolve around finances, they are more aligned to a Health and Safety expert in terms of understanding them.
Ultimately though, if you have never closely looked at them you are unlikely to know how they work whoever you are! 
I do find it really interesting and must all come down to how your brain works and time invested. My brother is a highly experienced, intelligent and qualified computer engineer. So whilst he can fix my PC, I get extremely frustrated explaining some quite basic pension information.