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Whether it’s ghosts and ghouls or the zombie apocalypse that usually come to mind at Halloween, this year we’ve got some truly hair-raising stuff for you to think about.

Pension planning for retirement is already a scary topic for many people in the UK. But it really doesn’t have to be. We’ve dug up three facts about retirement in the UK that become far less spooky once you have a plan in place.

State pensions fall scarily short by £8,500 a year.

The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association estimates that a single pensioner would need £10,200 a year just to survive retirement with the “minimum level” of lifestyle.

Doesn’t seem like much, right? Until you realise the maximum State Pension is just £9,339 a year. Meaning anyone without a private pension won’t even be able to enjoy the minimum standard of living in retirement.

And who wants to just survive in retirement anyway? That’s when you’re supposed to be enjoying the fruits of your life’s hard work. Profile Pensions estimates that the number you’ll need to live “comfortably” is £17,818. Meaning your State Pension alone would leave you about £8,500 a year short of enjoying a ‘comfortable lifestyle’. And all of this assumes you own your home outright.

Don’t get bitten by £12k in blood sucking fund fees.

Even when you feel like you’ve saved enough to enjoy the retirement lifestyle you’ve been dreaming of, there is still stuff lurking in the shadows waiting to jump out.

In 2018, Which? conducted an investigation into the fees and charges of pension drawdown plans in the UK. The consumer group’s research found pensioners with the most expensive drawdown plans would lose a frightening £12,000 in higher fees and charges compared to those with the least costly plans, over a 15yr period.

That means you could be up to £800 a year better off by choosing the right drawdown plan.

Almost £20bn in ‘ghost’ pensions haunt UK retirees.

According to the Association of British Insurers, there is an estimated £19.4 billion in lost and unclaimed pensions floating around in the ether.

When it comes to enjoying your retirement, tracking down every penny counts, and it’s even more important when you’re still planning and saving. It can be easy to lose track of pension pots over your career. But knowing where all your pots are gives you the option to bring everything together and make your money work harder for you on the road to retirement.

Want to see if some of that £19.4bn belongs to you? Ask us about hunting down your ghost pensions.

Finally, something that’s scarily good.

All the frightening parts of pension planning are a lot less of a threat when you have a bit of guidance. And it can literally pay to take professional advice. Research shows, on average, that UK savers improve their pension wealth by £30,991 by taking professional advice.

So, the question is… who you gonna call?

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