How to trace an old pension.

 

 

According to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), there is around £400 million in unclaimed pension savings.

During our working life we have, on average, 11 jobs, this can lead to an overabundance of different pension plans that we may have lost track of. There are a few reasons for this such as; we have not given old employers new addresses, which in turn means that we have stopped receiving statements.

Disadvantages of lots of pension pots

By having a number of pension pots that you no longer contribute to or you have lost track of, makes it harder for you to plan for your future eventual complete fund for retirement.

In addition:

• You may be missing out on compound interest
• The pension might be in poor performing funds or funds that are non-active.
• Each pension pot may have separate fees that can add up considerably.

Combine your old and existing pensions into one pot.

  

 

 

This has many advantages including:

• You only have to manage one rather than many, which will provide you with a clearer picture of how you can best plan for your retirement.
• There will only be one set of fees and modern pension schemes are generally lower cost than older ones.

Steps you need to take to trace your old pensions

• Vital details you will need are your National Insurance number and your date of birth.
• Have as many details about the pensions that you can before tracing including:
   - plan number
   - start date
   - employment dates
• Track down old statements, emails or post you may have had from previous pension providers
• Contact former employers
• Get in touch with the pension provider if you have their details
• If you still cannot track down old pension pots then you can use the Pension Tracing Service.

Pension Tracing Service

The Pension Tracing Service is a government initiative that launched in May 2016 and is free to use. It has a massive database of pension schemes to help you find a lost pension from a company you have worked for in the past as well as private pension schemes. Bringing together all lost pension plans can greatly improve your pension income when you eventually retire.

Please contact us on our Freefone number or by using the pensions enquiry button for independent pension advice; in addition we offer a pension tracing service.