Experts call for urgent action to fill care fund vacuum
Consumer education, product innovation and property renovation must be among the priorities to support a more sustainable social care sector, experts have warned. The comments were made when a panel met to discuss the findings of an Equity Release Council, Pure Retirement and My Care Consultant report on housing wealth and the social care funding […]
Soaring house prices likely to affect inheritance
House prices have risen 8.9 percent in the last year, meaning that far more people are likely to be liable to pay inheritance tax in the future if they are left a property when someone dies, according to an article in This is Money. From April to May 2021, the article reports that inheritance receipts […]
Almost £2m lost to pension fraud in first four months of 2021
Action Fraud has revealed that £1.8m has been lost to pension fraud, and we’re not even half way through the year yet. Pre-pandemic it appeared that the number of pension scam reports were falling, with data from the organisation revealing that reports in pension scams fell from 1,788 in 2014 to 358 in 2020. However, […]
Freezing the Lifetime Allowance penalises pension savers
We’re all eagerly awaiting the budget tomorrow, when Chancellor Rishi Sunak will outline how we plan to recover following the coronavirus pandemic. PIMFA, (The Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association) the trade association for wealth management, investment services and the investment and financial advice industry, is disappointed by reports that the Chancellor is considering […]
New Bill to increase State Pension
A proactive move by the Government has ensured State Pension increases, despite current legislation. The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) Secretary, Thérèse Coffey, has introduced a technical Bill in the House of Commons which gives the Government jurisdiction to increase it next year to avoid a State Pension freeze. The Bill was introduced to […]
What Does The Supreme Court Ruling On Pension Transfer Mean?
Inheritance Tax (IHT) is extremely confusing for clients. However, the latest ruling from the Supreme Court provides clarity over whether pension transfers should be subject to an IHT charge. Under current rules, any pension transfer made by someone who subsequently dies within two years of the transfer could result in the remaining defined contribution pension […]
Pensions Bill To Progress Through House Of Commons
The Pensions Schemes Bill will progress through the House of Commons next month, despite the coronavirus pandemic seemingly taking over politics in the UK. What is the Pension Schemes Bill? The Pension Schemes Bill will enable the introduction of two reforms which have been collectively defined as contribution pensions and pensions dashboards. Additionally, there will […]
Pensions Regulator Remains Focused On Protecting Savers
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has stated that it remains focused on protecting savers, despite the pandemic. In its corporate plan released earlier this week, TPR set out its direction over the next year despite the ‘radical rethink’ in response to the pandemic. There had been a Corporate Plan prior to Covid-19 which was set to […]
Covid-19 Benefits Could Drag 700,000 Retirees Into Poverty
Retirees could lose pension protections through the triple lock guarantee in order to help fund the support offered to the UK public during the lockdown. According to research from thinktank, Social Market Foundation (SMF), state funding will need to be significantly reduced in the years ahead in order to recoup the current state borrowing which […]
High Expectations On Private Pensions To Fund Retirement Income
It has been revealed that Brits are increasingly relying on their personal pensions to play a pivotal role in later life income, according to the latest Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) Report. Using data from the Wealth Assets Survey, the IFS Report entitled ‘Retirement expectations, attitudes and saving behaviour: how have these changed during a […]
Pension Pay Gap Woes
Research from Profile Pensions has revealed that the pensions gap between men and women, is far worse than the gender pay gap, which is attempting to be rectified. During their research, Profile Pensions analysed over 20,000 customers and discovered that on average women in the UK face retirements with 39% less in their pension pot […]
Retirees Face Nearly £20,000 Retirement Income Shortfall
Senior homeowners will need an annual retirement income which amounts to more than double of today’s average of £17,212. According to a report released by the Equity Release Council and Key, it has been revealed that older homeowners will need an annual retirement income of £35,196. However, the report found that mature homeowners are struggling […]
Quarter Of Couples Unaware Of Pension Total
Over a quarter of all couples in the UK do not discuss their pensions and later life plans with their loved ones. 25% of respondents have failed to discuss their later life plans or pension pot with their partners and 17% have failed to ever have a formal conversation about planning their finances for later […]
Government Could Halve Pension Tax Relief
Rumours suggest that Sajid Javid’s budget on March 11th is set to reduce the amount of tax relief offered to higher earners on their pension contributions. Those inside the Treasury intimated to the Financial Times that the Chancellor is looking into ways of saving money and drastically reforming pension tax relief has been deemed as […]
Warnings Of Significant Harm To Consumers
A Freedom of Information (FOI) requested by Buck, has discovered that almost 2,000 pension advisers have given “potentially unsuitable advice on pensions transfers necessitating further enquiry”. The information follows reports last week that found financial advisers were ‘causing significant harm to consumers’ financial well-being’. Of the number of IFAs who advised clients on defined benefit […]
Women Concerned By Retirement Decisions
A quarter of women are bewildered and nervous when it comes to making decisions regarding their retirement. When it comes to later life planning, almost a quarter (23%) were worried about making poor decisions that would impact on their retirement finances, according to Fidelity International. Furthermore, 13% felt overwhelmed and 15% were confused. Overall, the […]
Third Of Brits Ill-Equipped In Future Financial Planning
Many UK adults have not prepared for their financial futures, according to a new study by UK’s leading price comparison website. MoneySuperMarket surveyed the British public to determine UK savings and find out how they are preparing for the future – and revealed that a third (33%) of UK adults have no idea how much […]
Quarter Of Homeowners Funding Social Care With Home Equity
Almost a quarter of home owners are planning to use the equity in their homes to fund their care costs in later life. 24% of unretired homeowners would prefer to use the equity in their homes than deplete their pension pot when looking to fund the costs associated with old age. The research also indicated […]
Bank Of Mum And Dad Lending Putting Strain On Retirement Plans
The Bank of Mum and Dad (BoMaD) are now the 11th largest mortgage lender in the UK, eclipsing the Help to Buy schemes in helping younger buyers gain a foothold on the property ladder. In total, the BoMaD will lend almost £70 billion to potential homeowners this year, a 10% increase on 2018 despite the […]
Retirees Increasingly Reliant On Equity Release To Pay Debts
Retirees are increasingly shackled and fettered to their debt according to an equity release advice specialist. According to research carried out by equity release experts Key, over half of over-55s are using equity release products to pay off their outstanding debts. Overall, a third (30%) are using the money from the equity built up in […]
