The FCA is proposing “significant reform” of the general insurance market to enhance competition, ensure consumers will receive fair value, and increase trust in the market. The FCA is proposing that when a customer renews their home or motor insurance policy, they pay no more than they would if they were new to their provider through the same sales channel. …
Pension Freedoms age rise confirmed by Gov’t
The government has confirmed that the minimum age for accessing a pension will increase from 55 to 57 in 2028. In a written question to Parliament, Labour MP Stephen Timms asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase the minimum age at which people can access their private pension under the tax rules. In response, Conservative …
BoE reduces base rate again to 0.1%
The Bank of England (BoE) has cut interest rates further amid the Covid-19 crisis. At a special meeting yesterday, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) unanimously voted to cut interest rates from 0.25% to 0.1% and to increase holdings of UK government and corporate bonds by £200bn. The BoE, which has just appointed Andrew Bailey as its new governor, said the …
Budget 2020 Summary
In this article, we provide a summary of the Budget 2020 content that is of relevance to financial planning. Pensions Tapered annual allowance This measure increases the income limits used in calculating the tapered annual allowance and decreases the minimum tapered annual allowance. • Threshold income, which is broadly total income before tax (less employee/personal contributions), is increased from £110,000 …
BoE slashes interest rate to 0.25%
In a bid to shore up the economy the Bank of England has cut interest rates back to their lowest ever level, 0.25% from 0.75%. The MPC (Monetary Policy Committee) voted unanimously to slash the bank rate at an unscheduled meeting, which ended yesterday. The rate cut is part of a ‘package of measures to help UK businesses and households …
Annuity sales rise 22% at L&G
Individual annuity sales jumped 22 per cent last year at Legal and General, latest results show. Bucking a wider market trend of falling sales since the pension freedoms, the insurer put part of the spike down to “increased intermediary presence”. FCA data shows annuity sales from October 2015 to March 2016 for those accessing their pots for the first time …