Preparing for an interview with an adviser

akwexavante

I know next to nothing about pensions.

I may be lumping together two pension pots together to create a drawdown pension and start drawing from it.

What sort of questions should i be asking?

Initial fees, ongoing fees, cost and charges, fund management fees etc, anything else?

Can i defer my 25% tax-free lump sum and take it at a future date, for example?

What other questions are there that a financial adviser would not what me to ask!!!!?

Trying to put together a list of questions that i should be asking.

I've had my first interview with my first adviser and i have a second interview tomorrow.

I've had my first interview with a second adviser and awaiting a second interview on an as yet unknown date.

I've arranged an initial interview with an Independent adviser on the 11th February

wjr4

Why are you going back to SJP & true potential again? 

akwexavante

wjr4 said:

Why are you going back to SJP & true potential again? 

To gain knowledge, confidence in myself and why not, to find out what they have to offer.  At the mo the IFA's initial arrangement fee is actually the highest of the three and double True Potentials initial fee. But the IFA may be offering me a cheaper ongoing product outbalancing the initial high fee......... I have no idea!

I can still do nothing and wait another year or two. Or i can decide to go for it and look at three different offerings and take a best educated guess as to which one of the three may better suit me.

Without some knowledge and therefore lack of confidence, how does one decide what's best!?

dunstonh

To gain knowledge, confidence in myself and why not, to find out what they have to offer.  At the mo the IFA's initial arrangement fee is actually the highest of the three and double True Potentials initial fee. But the IFA may be offering me a cheaper ongoing product outbalancing the initial high fee......... I have no idea!

SJP and TP are two of the most expensive distribution channels.   IFAs will vary and you will get lower cost ones and higher cost ones.    So, you could find an IFA charging similar levels to either of those.   However, you have to look at the bottom line, as TP and SJP have large call centres and support teams that are paid outside of the adviser charge but within the product and fund charges.   IFAs, on the other hand, do more of the work with provider/funds doing less.  So, the balance of charges can vary.    Hence, the bottom line needs to be the focus.

Without some knowledge and therefore lack of confidence, how does one decide what's best!?

What we can say is that it won't be SJP or TP.

Albermarle

They will normally ask you a lot of questions about your financial status ( not just pensions) and what your objectives are, such as early retirement, leave a legacy etc .

Can i defer my 25% tax-free lump sum and take it at a future date, for example?

You can take it when you want ( as long as you are old enough) and take it in slugs if you want.
What you can not do is take any taxable income without taking some tax free cash as well..

akwexavante

So, you could find an IFA charging similar levels to either of those.

I suffer profound deafness and therefore voice and video calls are VERY difficult, so an IFA needs to be within say an hours drive so that i can have one on one face to face meetings.  I've searched and i've searched and i can't find one a sensible distance away.

akwexavante

What you can not do is take any taxable income without taking some tax free cash as well..

I don't understand this at all, please can you elaborate on this a little further.  I'm a dummy and have next to no knowledge or understanding at this time.

Does this mean that i have no choice other than to take an initial (Very Small, £100.00!?) tax-free sum when the plan is created and defer the remainder to some future date?

AlanP_2

You can take tax free £s now and taxable later if you want but you can't do the opposite.

That is you can't take taxable income and leave the tax free bit in the pension until later.

Taking taxable income will automatically trigger a tax free amount at 33% of the taxable amount to result in 25% tax free and 75% taxable. 

Once overall 25% tax free is used up it all taxable.

MallyGirl

I'd want to know if there are there any exit or transfer fees ie is it going to cost you to move on from them in the future if/when your knowledge or confidence increases

akwexavante

So i have to take the 25% tax-free lump sum to get started even if i don't need it, i was hoping to leave it until after state pension age.

I'm very confused here.   The two initial advisers asked me what i would like from my pension.  I said that i did not want an initial tax-free lump sum now and i wanted to defer it until state pension age and take it then.  They didn't say i could, nor did they say i couldn't do that.

I would have assumed that if this was not possible they would have said so there and then!

MallyGirl

You don't have to take any out now. At the point where you do want to take some then it has to be tax free and taxable or just tax free. It can't be just taxable with the tax free bit staying in the pension