I read an article this morning about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on global stock markets and how this has affected pensions in the UK. According to the latest Moneyfacts UK Personal Pension Trends Treasury report, the average UK pension fund value fell by around 15% during the first quarter of 2020. This will naturally be a cause for concern for many people, worried about how it might affect their longer term retirement plans.
This could also have a major impact on anyone who has transferred from a Defined Benefit (DB) pension to a Defined Contribution (DC) pension, or indeed anyone considering doing so. As such, I was pleased to hear that The Pension Regulator has instructed Trustees of DB Schemes to write to any members who are considering a transfer pointing out that it is unlikely to be in their best long-term interests. As always, there can be scenarios where it makes sense to transfer but, for the vast majority of people, this is not the case. I’d urge anyone to think very carefully before proceeding with such a request because, once the transfer is made, you simply cannot reverse the decision and a valuable secure retirement income could be lost.
If you wish to discuss your specific circumstances, please contact us via email in the first instance and we’ll call you back at a convenient time.