Consolidating pensions

Bandy2023

Hi, all
I currently have a pension with Scottish Widows (or whatever they are called now, it appears on my Halifax app)

I don't contribute to it, it's currently around £112k

I did take my tax free sum out of it a couple of years ago

I'm now being told that because it's "crystalised" I cannot transfer it to another provider?

Is this correct, just because I've taken the tax free sum I cannot move it?

Marcon

See https://www.aviva.co.uk/retirement/transfer-your-pension/knowledge-centre/can-i-transfer-a-crystallised-pension/

Note particularly:

Transferring a crystallised pension 

A pension in income drawdown must be transferred to another drawdown pension, which must be a new, separate, empty arrangement. It’s the same with an annuity or scheme pension. But all of them will depend on whether your provider will allow a transfer. 

Whether you can transfer your crystallised pension depends on the type of pension you have and your pension provider. 

If you have a defined benefit pension (also called a final salary pension) then once the pension is crystallised, you won’t be able to move it to another provider. You can only make transfers up to a year before the pension starts making payments to you. 

With a defined contribution pension, you can transfer crystallised funds to another pension provider, but they must be transferred on a like-for-like basis - so all the benefits have to be transferred at the same time. 

To transfer your annuity, contact both your current and prospective providers to confirm if they allow transfers. Check for any fees or specific requirements.

El_Torro

There are certain criteria that need to be met, but yes, you can transfer a crystallised pension. For example you can't do a partial transfer, you need to transfer the whole lot.

Bandy2023

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82122104#Comment_82122104

It's not a final salary pension, that's for sure.

My current employer pension ( again, not final salary ) is with Aviva, I'd like to transfer to them.

Marcon

Who is telling you that you can't? You won't be able to transfer it to the same arrangement as the one with Aviva to which you are currently contributing, as explained above:

'A pension in income drawdown must be transferred to another drawdown pension, which must be a new, separate, empty arrangement. It’s the same with an annuity or scheme pension. But all of them will depend on whether your provider will allow a transfer.'

El_Torro

When you say your current employer pension I assume this pension isn't crystallised. So the crystallised pension will need to be kept separate from the uncrystallised one. Shouldn't be too complicated for Aviva to handle though.

Remember that you need to speak to Aviva about the transfer, not your current provider.

Bandy2023

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82122132#Comment_82122132

Well the Aviva pension is crystallised too, to be fair.

But I don't mind starting new one with Aviva, at least they'd all be under the same roof / app

I'm just not happy with how it performs with Scottish Widows, it just doesn't seem to grow at all ( even if I'm not actively contributiing to it )

retiringin26

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82122142#Comment_82122142

Have you done any digging to understand what funds it is in, at SW? It offers a range of home grown funds and there might be one or indeed a mix or several that would suit better.

As an when you move it, you'll want to be choosing what (type of)! investments it goes into, so doing the homework on both options isn't going to harm.

You might also have some preferential management charges with SW (or not) so again you will want to go into this with your eyes open.

DRS1

Just on the charges front - your Aviva pension from your current employer may also have some preferential charges on it. If you open your own pension with Aviva for the SW to be transferred to don't assume you will get the same charges for that one as for your employer one. Check it. Of course fees may not be the reason you want to consolidate the pensions but it is a factor you should check - you wouldn't want to end up paying more than you do at the moment.

dunstonh

I'm just not happy with how it performs with Scottish Widows, it just doesn't seem to grow at all ( even if I'm not actively contributiing to it )

That isn't anything to do with the pension. That is to do with your choice of investment funds. You don't change the pension because you don't like the investment funds, unless that happens to be the only fund available.

Albermarle

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82122142#Comment_82122142

Presuming your workplace Aviva pension is only partly crystallised, as new contributions are presumably being made every month ( which will be uncrystallised of course)?

I currently have a pension with Scottish Widows (or whatever they are called now, it appears on my Halifax app)

They are still called Scottish Widows. Both they and Halifax are part of Lloyds, and if you have the Halifax app it shows the SW pension fund total ,whether you want it to or not. However to look at details of your pension, such as alternative investment fund choices as suggested above, you will have to access SW directly.