Tracking down a personal or workplace pension
In order to plan for your retirement, you need to figure out how much income you’ll get from all your pensions, including workplace or personal plans, as well as the State Pension.
It’s actually pretty easy to get this information even for a pension you might have lost track of over the years. Among those with a forgotten pension, the majority think they have misplaced one pot (77%), although 17% believe they have forgotten about two and 6% have forgotten three or more.
According to government figures, there is an estimated £400 million in unclaimed pension savings. At the same time, almost three in five (59%) UK adults are worried about not having enough money to last them in retirement.
Although tracking down a lost pension can provide a valuable boost to retirement income, those who delay could receive a smaller amount than expected. A forgotten pension may have been subject to charges and not invested in the best way suited to the policyholder, making it worth less than it would have been if it had been actively managed.
Contact the personal pension provider
If you know which pension provider your pension was with, then your first step should be to contact them. Write a letter and provide as many of the following details as possible:
- your plan number
- your date of birth
- your National Insurance number
- the date your pension was set up
If you’re tracing a workplace pension
If you want to trace a workplace pension – a scheme run by an employer – then your first point of contact should be the employer. However, if your employer provided access to a personal or stakeholder scheme, then you should contact the pension provider if you know their details.
If you don’t have the pension provider’s details, ask your former employer – they should be able to provide the details. Information you’ll need to provide to the employer is:
- your National Insurance number
- the date you started work with the employer
- the date you stopped working there
- The dates you joined and left the pension scheme
Write a letter, the key questions to ask are what type of plan it is (for example, defined benefit or defined contribution?) and, unless it’s a defined benefit scheme, which pension provider your pension is with.
Achieve your retirement goals
Regardless of the life stage you have arrived at, it is important to receive expert and professional advice on your pension plans and requirements. For more information about how we could help you achieve your retirement goals, please speak to Yash Tosar on 01908 523 420 or email info@95.154.196.167
