Auto-enrolment Pension League Table

Albermarle

Mark_d said:

How a pension performs depends on where the member chooses to invest their funds.  I'm sure no other colleague at my company invests their pension in the same selection of funds as I do, or in the same percentages.

You must work for a company with unusually financially literate employees.
I think in general > 95% of employees in workplace pensions are invested in the default fund, having made no investment choices of their own.
Probably at least 50% have even no idea what a default fund is, or that they are invested in one.

Moonwolf

Is it worth asking about how funds handle the uninterested, which is a much higher percentage of “investors” than it should be?

For years I was in the default funds in my group pension scheme, which I think was based on a simple attitude to risk questionnaire I had to answer.

I took ownership after learning from here, but it would be interesting to know what the range of default options are for the big suppliers, how the uninterested/disinterested are allocated into those funds and how the default packs have performed.

There must be, possibly millions in auto-enrolled schemes who are paying in but have had little or no interaction with the pension company so simply saying it is the investments that perform and not the company seems to ignore how it works on the ground for many people.

Bostonerimus1

Wow, I'm getting "blind leading the blind" vibes here. 

I'm assuming this is a small company. Make sure you understand any fees involved eg NEST has a 1.8% contribution fee which is outrageous IMO and maybe ask other local business people what they've done. 

Albermarle

Moonwolf said:

Is it worth asking about how funds handle the uninterested, which is a much higher percentage of “investors” than it should be?

For years I was in the default funds in my group pension scheme, which I think was based on a simple attitude to risk questionnaire I had to answer.

I took ownership after learning from here, but it would be interesting to know what the range of default options are for the big suppliers, how the uninterested/disinterested are allocated into those funds and how the default packs have performed.

There must be, possibly millions in auto-enrolled schemes who are paying in but have had little or no interaction with the pension company so simply saying it is the investments that perform and not the company seems to ignore how it works on the ground for many people.

One of the auto enrolment providers ( I forget which one), stated that 99% of its customers were in the default fund.
So you have a point that the performance of the providers default fund could be a valid point of comparison, considering how few auto enrolment customers ever choose anything different.

Annieak47

A chap called Henry Tapper has been trying to set up something like this I think - see AgeWage.com

I'm not sure how far it's got and whether it's still in development mode, or even suitable for a smaller company.

When I was tasked with setting up an AE-compliant scheme for the small company I work in, I looked for one that would offer a range of lifestyle options along with a wide range of fund choices (for me!); a good app; reasonable employer costs; good member comms - and one where we weren't restricted by auto-enrolment contribution bands (so contributions based on full basic salary rather than just a slice of it). In the end, if you go with one of the larger master trusts, it's all much of a muchness.