Pensions Advice - Insight4universities etc.

Daisy_Chaine

Hello

I'm looking to reduce my hours by at least one day a week this year, but having spent all my working life until now trying to avoid thinking about my pension (USS), now find I need some advice to get my head around the pros and cons of my options for doing this. I'm reasonably sure I can afford it, either with or without a pension flex, but need some help with deciding the best way, and picking up the inevitable things that I will have overlooked. So - although I'm not even sure whether it's OK to ask for recommendations here - I'm looking for some independent financial advice from someone who won't try to sell me a "product" at this stage.  We're constantly told to find independent financial advice, but I've no idea even how to go about finding that!  Obviously I'd prefer it to be free, but would be happy to pay a reasonable amount for unbiased advice.

Does anybody have any experience with Insight4universities, for example?  Or any other advisors with experience in the universities sector?

TIA 

Marcon

Daisy_Chaine said:

Hello

I'm looking to reduce my hours by at least one day a week this year, but having spent all my working life until now trying to avoid thinking about my pension (USS), now find I need some advice to get my head around the pros and cons of my options for doing this. I'm reasonably sure I can afford it, either with or without a pension flex, but need some help with deciding the best way, and picking up the inevitable things that I will have overlooked. So - although I'm not even sure whether it's OK to ask for recommendations here - I'm looking for some independent financial advice from someone who won't try to sell me a "product" at this stage.  We're constantly told to find independent financial advice, but I've no idea even how to go about finding that!  Obviously I'd prefer it to be free, but would be happy to pay a reasonable amount for unbiased advice.

Does anybody have any experience with Insight4universities, for example?  Or any other advisors with experience in the universities sector?

TIA 

I think it's against the site's rules to give recommendations, but your university should have a pensions officer who may have a list of advisers with specialist knowledge of the USS. Otherwise googling on your question should give you some useful links to those advisers with particular USS knowledge.

Daisy_Chaine

Noted about recommendations not being allowed.
Years ago we had a hugely helpful and very knowledgeable pensions officer, but more recently as far as I know that post no longer exists and pensions queries are dealt with by the payroll team generally, who don't seem to have much more of a clue than anyone else in the university, if they even respond to emails.