Working for Tata steel , they got rid of our final salary scheme and the majority of workers pulled their lump sums out. We had tidy pots and , dependant on lifestyle have options to access 25% of lump at 55 yrs old, lump goes to spouse if worse thing happens! Also early retirement if your circumstances allow . I'm 57 job sharing and bought two ducatis However , my money has provided good returns so I'm exremely happy, most people who have taken their pots are suing the financial advisors as the fca say we shouldn't have been advised to withdraw from the new scheme (although we had no idea what it was). Many ifas have gone into liquidation with the fca paying out around £80k to each complainant , straight into your bank account. I know at least 8 have been paid out in our dept alone with many more now claiming. With my firm out performing the current scheme I have no claim but I'm happy to be in my current position. As stated get good advice , don't get hung up on the fees as you should get what you pay for .I doubt there's any ifa in South Wales who'd transfer it now
Yes for ifs, and financial conduct authority. Fca. I forget I didn't have a clue 3 years ago but now not an hour goes by in work when pensions and who is suing who goes by!,
... which is why some companies are very reluctant to accept transfers from DB schemes, and if they do, they require proof that an advisor has recommended that the transfer is definitely the right thing for the pension holder to do.
I’ve not read every thread but I would also say the St James Place are a horribly expensive choice with very poor funds. I’ve just transferred my Standard Life pension to a SIPP with Interactive Investor, but you have to manage it yourself. However a simple mix of 40% bonds and 60% global Tracker should see you ok. The important thing is to keep your fees a d costs as low as possible. I also used a company called Bancroft Wealth for some financial advice, the advantage of them is they charge a fixed fee rather than a % of your investments. If you have a reasonable pot the. It can get very expensive, very quickly if the IFA takes a %. https://bancroftwealth.co.uk/ Be very careful about coming out of a defined benefits pension, it’s usually better to stay in, unless the company goes bust.
If you know you’re unlikely to last too many years, stick it on a personal pension and spend it all in 10yr
