Consolidating Pensions

[einastronaut]

Forgive my ignorance on managing pensions. I'm leaving RM after 7 years, and concerned that my pension contributions while working there have been scattered across multiple plans (3 I believe), two of which I have no access to, or much information on. The latest one, for the last few years, doesn't seem to yet fully exist, so I'm not sure where contributions have been going, or who the plan is even operated by. The one I do have access to is (quite literally) losing money to excessive fees (and anaemic performance).

Is it possible to withdraw and consolidate all of my RM pensions into one place upon leaving, for example to a pensions consolidation service like moneybox or pensionbee?

I won't be of retirement age for many decades but I don't want to leave these pots to languish under RM's invariably feckless stewardship. They appear to be fairly poor schemes to begin with, projecting very little income upon retirement, so I'd rather consolidate them into a place where one has greater control and access. Is this possible with these sundry plans, especially given the mix of DB, DC and whatever the current one is?

[RobertT]

With 7 years service, I would expect you to have been in the RM Defined Contribution Plan(RMDCP), initially via Zurich and then Scottish Widows. I'm not sure whether your cash would have been transferred over, or whether you have two separate pots?

Once you have 5 years in the RMDCP, you would then have been given the choice to join section F of the RM Pension Plan(RMPP) instead, and pay into the Defined Benefit Cash Balance Scheme(DBCBS).

Some people seem to think the DBCBS is part of the new CDC pension(also known as RMCPP), which is finally due to start some time in 2024. But that is wrong, it's part of the RMPP!

For section A, B & C members, the DBCBS is normally used to fund at least some of the tax free lump when taking NRA65(and sometimes NRA60) benefits. But for section F, it's just a lump sum normally payable at age 65, 25% of which will be tax free.

For more info on all RM pensions, see the 'pension websites stickie'.

It's perfectly possible to transfer your RM pensions to another provider as they're all just pots of money. There are many providers out there and most if not all, enable you to consolidate multiple pensions. So you have a much bigger choice than the two you mentioned.

[heapsy]

If you have quite a number of years before taking your pension then this would be a good idea. You need to choose carefully where you move your funds to. Somewhere like Hargreaves Lansdown or similar would probably offer the best service. The reason being is that they offer far more in the way of investment options, funds, Investment Trust, shares etc. Whereas going to say, Standard Life, would only give you limited options. As a general piece of advice, I'll quote the Sage of Omaha, Warren Buffett. His singular, most important words on investing were quite simply "read more". In other words, do your research. Read the finance columns of the daily /Sunday papers. Websites such as Trustnet offer valuable information on the spread of investments of particular funds, including the funds volatility. Some well chosen, cash rich, regular dividend payers such as Shell, BP etc will be a good long term investment, and you don't really need to pour loads of money in to these. Let the dividends do the work for you. Good luck.

[RobertT]

It's always a good idea to do your homework when choosing a pension provider and the investments you hold with it, because the options they offer can vary. As can the charges and deposit limits, etc.

There's a big wide world out there with SIPP's, that let you invest in a much wider range of investments than you can via your RM pension(RMDCP) and AVC's(Bonusplan & Flexiplan).
So researching your options is very important.

I agree with heapsy, that it's dividends and compounding that makes your money grow!

Although I have to disagree with him on Standard Life!
I have a pension with them, and they actually have three SIPP offerings, the most adventurous of which let's you invest in virtually anything(there are exceptions), including thousands of funds and shares, and you can even trade gold bullion via your pension.

So make sure you choose the provider, the product and the investments that best fit your age, aims and attitude to risk. And don't forget to regularly review your choices.

[NorthernBoy]

I use II as my sipp provider and find them very good. I think they charge about £10 a month and it takes them about 8 weeks to add in tax relief. Good website also and easy to use.

Given your long investment horizon I would split my money say maybe 70% into an all world tracker fund (vanguard or similar) and dollar cost average every month.

For the remainder I would buy Tesla stock each month, again dollar cost averaging. Tesla has the potential to be the biggest company in the world with a few years and the gains could be massive. As ever do your own research.

[fluxburner]

Vanguard have recently launched a SIPP, I believe they have the cheapest fees of any platform and a wide range of low cost Mutual funds, Exchange traded funds and Investment trusts. Not sure if they offer share trading.
I use Fidelity International for my SIPP, fastest and best customer service I've ever experienced, okay fees and something like 3000 products to invest in, plus share trading.
The vast majority of providers, from what I've seen have good services.

It's s a "do your research" situation really.

If you are in the RMDCP, then I can give you my example of transferring the pot into my SIPP.
It took 16 working days and 2 phone calls, one to Fidelity and one to Scottish Widows to determine the exact address related to RM pensions (they have about 8 different addresses, but incredibly easy overall.

[heapsy]

Although I have to disagree with him on Standard Life!
I have a pension with them, and they actually have three SIPP offerings, the most adventurous of which let's you invest in virtually anything(there are exceptions), including thousands of funds and shares, and you can even trade gold bullion via your pension.

My point was that if you used a specific company like Standard Life, you are limited in choice. HL, or other such companies offer a wider choice.
You seem to enjoy picking at everyones posts, but in fact you are not helping those such as the original poster, who it seems, in need of a bit of guidance. Not the first time you have done so, and not just with my posts.

[RobertT]

My point was that if you used a specific company like Standard Life, you are limited in choice. HL, or other such companies offer a wider choice.
You seem to enjoy picking at everyones posts, but in fact you are not helping those such as the original poster, who it seems, in need of a bit of guidance. Not the first time you have done so, and not just with my posts.

You suggested SL doesn't offer a full range of investments, I pointed out they do.
You can invest in 4,000 different funds via their SIPP: https://www.standardlife.co.uk/pensions/sipp

Happy new year.

[heapsy]

My point was that if you used a specific company like Standard Life, you are limited in choice. HL, or other such companies offer a wider choice.
You seem to enjoy picking at everyones posts, but in fact you are not helping those such as the original poster, who it seems, in need of a bit of guidance. Not the first time you have done so, and not just with my posts.

You suggested SL doesn't offer a full range of investments, I pointed out they do.
You can invest in 4,000 different funds via their SIPP: https://www.standardlife.co.uk/pensions/sipp

Happy new year.

No I didn't, I said they offer far more in the way of investment options. What I saying about Standard LIfe, or any specific companies for that matter, is that you only have their funds to choose from. HL, AJ Bell and the like offer a greater range.

[RobertT]

My point was that if you used a specific company like Standard Life, you are limited in choice. HL, or other such companies offer a wider choice.
You seem to enjoy picking at everyones posts, but in fact you are not helping those such as the original poster, who it seems, in need of a bit of guidance. Not the first time you have done so, and not just with my posts.

You suggested SL doesn't offer a full range of investments, I pointed out they do.
You can invest in 4,000 different funds via their SIPP: https://www.standardlife.co.uk/pensions/sipp

Happy new year.

No I didn't, I said they offer far more in the way of investment options. What I saying about Standard LIfe, or any specific companies for that matter, is that you only have their funds to choose from. HL, AJ Bell and the like offer a greater range.

The SL website lists 4,349 different funds you can invest in via their SIPP. There are obviously some of their own, but the majority aren't.

Other 'specific companies' also offer similar services, such as Fidelity for example. Why wouldn't they, it's all business to them.

The HL website says 'over 2,500 funds', while AJ Bell say '2,000+'. Although they both have investment trusts and ETF's as separate choices and I suspect those are included in SL's overall list.

Make of that what you will.