PENSIONSANDSAVINGS.COM

Amber Rudd is right to warn employers to take pension funding seriously. As most schemes are closed, employers have little business interest in the open-ended legacy liabilities – so important for trustees to increase funding sooner rather than later. DWP and Regulator should also encourage trustees to consider corporate finance advice to scrutinise employer business. Trustees, not employers, run investments and control balance of risks. Amber Rudd has today put employers on notice that they must take their pension liabilities…

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As UK has decided to uprate State Pensions in EU this April, even if there is No Deal, they could agree to uprate all frozen pensions in other countries if they wish to solve this ongoing scandal. Government says State Pensions will only be uprated if host countries reciprocate but is abandoning that rule for Brexit.  340,000 British pensioners would need uprating, while hardly any EU citizens retire to the UK.  British pensioners could lose their pension increases if there…

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What 2019 will bring for Pensions 2018 has seen the start of some important pension policy trends, which will continue into 2019. What is most likely to happen and what still urgently needs to be done? Here are some thoughts. Auto-enrolment program finally fully implemented as pension contributions double in April 2019, amid hopes that the behavioural success will keep opt-out rates low: As pensions auto-enrolment continued to roll out across the country, opt-out rates were unaffected, despite the doubling…

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Pensions Dashboard must overcome many hurdles and first requirement is to ensure accurate records. Legacy schemes will take years and cost huge sums to convert to electronic format and this has delayed Dashboard project so far. Trying to get all old pensions included on a Pensions Dashboard on day one is doomed to failure.  Pensions Dashboard could start with auto-enrolment and State Pension first – but Regulators must ensure pension records are correct. Even recent auto-enrolment data are full of…

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Men and women’s State Pension age will be equalised tomorrow 6 November 2018. But equal State Pension age does not mean pension equalit.   Ten reasons women lose out in pensions as gender pensions gap remains wide. Tuesday November 6th is the day men and women’s pension ages are equalised:  After decades of difference, when women received their state pension at age 60, while men had to wait till age 65, tomorrow sees the historic date when women and men…

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Court ruling about pensions equalisation could take years and cost billions to implement. Equal pensions are important but complexity of UK rules and poor data records will mean difficulties for pension schemes. GMP pension problems highlight how vital it is to have accurate pension records – trustees and Regulators must demand auto-enrolment scheme data are checked and corrected. A High Court ruling today about pensions could have enormous ramifications for most final salary-type pension schemes. As with all things related…

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European Court recommends better protection for workers’ pensions. Landmark ECJ ruling finds PPF cap unlawful – workers must not lose over half their pension. Small number of people affected, but hugely important to each one of them. PPF (and FAS) compensation will improve, but 1% impact on funding shouldn’t affect PPF levy. Nobody should lose more than half their pension: A landmark ruling from the ECJ today has confirmed that the protection of UK workers’ pensions is inadequate. Pension Protection…

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