DB pension transfer timing?

desperate_times

Marcon said:

desperate_times said:

Well in case anybody ever reads this wondering the same as me, my transfer has completed and it took just 5 days (!) from submitting completed documents (of which just 2 days was checking documents and getting approval to secure the CETV and 3 for processing the payment.) My IFA said up to 12 weeks, the pension fund themselves said up to 8 weeks but far quicker. This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. 

Which is the exception to the rule, so your quest for 'examples' would have been hopelessly misleading - as almost all of us said in our replies, rather confirming the correctness of those responses!

desperate_times said:

Of course another scheme or even this one at another time could have been 2-3 months but might be useful to know it can be a lot quicker if you get your forms right, have a good advisor etc. 

Not remotely useful, I'm afraid, given the number of variables involved. Individual war stories rarely are - after all, nobody could rely on a particular timescale, especially a very short one.

Who said anything about relying? It's just an indication that times COULD be much quicker than the maximum times being quoted. I am not saying anybody should commit themselves financially on that basis. You clearly don't see any benefit in having a little bit of hope that things may be quicker, which is fine, but plenty of people are in a difficult situation, financially and mentally, and a little bit of positive hope can go a long way in helping get through day to day, week to week. 

And not sure why my example would have been misleading. I had rather optimistically hoped for a range of responses to gauge where the 3 months was likely or just advisors and pension companies being cautious. If 10 people had replied and say 1 had taken 1 month, 4 2 months, 3 1 month and me and somebody else a week or two, that would be useful information. But alas didn't get the examples, 

desperate_times

Albermarle said:

 This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. 

I presume the transfer was to a stakeholder pension with either Aviva or Standard Life? as AFAIK ( could be wrong of course) these are the only mainstream options that will accept insistent clients.

No it was to a personal pension with one of the other big pension providers. To be clear I had taken full advise as my DC pension had protected benefits and was advised against transfer but they agreed to facilitate it on an insistent client basis. Originally they said there were few options for who would accept me and in the end said there was only one option. 

Albermarle

Marcon said:

Albermarle said:

 This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. 

I presume the transfer was to a stakeholder pension with either Aviva or Standard Life? as AFAIK ( could be wrong of course) these are the only mainstream options that will accept insistent clients.

An insistent client is a different animal from someone who is simply transferring without a positive recommendation from the adviser - in the latter case, that's where a stakeholder comes into play.

I always understood that someone transferring without a positive recommendation, was normally referred to as an insistent client?
Maybe a subtle difference I was not aware of. There are a lot of those in the pensions world !

Aretnap

Albermarle said:

Marcon said:

Albermarle said:

 This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. 

I presume the transfer was to a stakeholder pension with either Aviva or Standard Life? as AFAIK ( could be wrong of course) these are the only mainstream options that will accept insistent clients.

An insistent client is a different animal from someone who is simply transferring without a positive recommendation from the adviser - in the latter case, that's where a stakeholder comes into play.

I always understood that someone transferring without a positive recommendation, was normally referred to as an insistent client?
Maybe a subtle difference I was not aware of. There are a lot of those in the pensions world !

You're an insistent client if your financial advisor says "well I've warned you that this is a bad idea but you say you want to do it anyway so I'll go ahead and arrange the transfer for you. On your head be it..." Not as common as it used to be: fewer and fewer advisors are willing to do this for obvious reasons. 

It's a different scenario to your advise giving you advice that a pension transfer is unsuitable and having no further involvement in the process, but you arrange the transfer yourself anyway.

Albermarle

Aretnap said:

Albermarle said:

Marcon said:

Albermarle said:

 This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. 

I presume the transfer was to a stakeholder pension with either Aviva or Standard Life? as AFAIK ( could be wrong of course) these are the only mainstream options that will accept insistent clients.

An insistent client is a different animal from someone who is simply transferring without a positive recommendation from the adviser - in the latter case, that's where a stakeholder comes into play.

I always understood that someone transferring without a positive recommendation, was normally referred to as an insistent client?
Maybe a subtle difference I was not aware of. There are a lot of those in the pensions world !

You're an insistent client if your financial advisor says "well I've warned you that this is a bad idea but you say you want to do it anyway so I'll go ahead and arrange the transfer for you. On your head be it..." Not as common as it used to be: fewer and fewer advisors are willing to do this for obvious reasons. 

It's a different scenario to your advise giving you advice that a pension transfer is unsuitable and having no further involvement in the process, but you arrange the transfer yourself anyway.

Thanks for the explanation.

Vanphys

I think there were no offers of timescales, in that to transfer from a DB scheme to a DC or SIPP is so rare!
I am intrigued to know what your IFA said to you? 

Marcon

desperate_times said:

Well in case anybody ever reads this wondering the same as me, my transfer has completed and it took just 5 days (!) from submitting completed documents (of which just 2 days was checking documents and getting approval to secure the CETV and 3 for processing the payment.) My IFA said up to 12 weeks, the pension fund themselves said up to 8 weeks but far quicker. This was the pension fund of a big blue chip company transferring to one of the biggest pension providers as an insistent client. Of course another scheme or even this one at another time could have been 2-3 months but might be useful to know it can be a lot quicker if you get your forms right, have a good advisor etc. 

Info provided earlier in thread. See above.

Asking how long a transfer 'could' take is like saying that you're waiting for a bus and the timetable says one will be along in no more than 20 minutes, but has anyone else had a shorter wait...