Chancellor under pressure to scrap 25% tax free lump sum

Chancellor George Osborne is facing increasing pressure to scrap the 25% tax-free lump sum people can take out of the pension pots ahead of next month’s Budget. Currently people can access 25% of their pension pots tax-free in a single lump sum when they reach 55. Think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs recently proposed the tax-free lump sum should …

Second-hand annuities – Pro’s and Con’s

The government has stated that from 2017 pensioners will be able to sell their annuities for a lump sum. This would extend pension freedoms to those who’ve already bought a guaranteed income. But can it really work? We wonder… When pension freedom arrived in April 2015, many people missed out. Those who had already bought a guaranteed income no longer …

Basic state pension to rise to £119 per week

Autumn Statement boost for pensioners In Wednesday’s Autumn Statement, the Chancellor will announce the basic state pension will increase to £119.30 a week from April 2016. The BBC reported the basic state pension will get its biggest rise since 2001. The increase equates to 2.9% and will be worth £174.20 extra a year to someone on a full basic state …

Drawdown interest drops and annuities surge six months after pension freedoms

New research has suggested that 10 per cent more people are likely to seek a guaranteed income – such as an annuity – than they were in the immediate aftermath of the introduction of pension freedoms in April this year. The latest index from financial forecasters eValue has revealed that 43 per cent are now exploring a guaranteed income post-retirement, …

Enhanced Annuity providers to merge

Specialist annuity providers Just Retirement and Partnership are planning a £1.7bn merger. The Enhanced Annuity providers are to merge and become the JRP Group, it has been announced today. The companies would raise £150m in equity even though they anticipate annual savings of £40m at a one-off cost of £60m. Both are comfortably capitalised on paper. But meeting the EU’s …

Five reasons to buy a pension annuity

After a lifetime accumulating pension savings, you reach the point when those savings must provide a regular income for your retirement. Recently the options have become much broader, but the most traditional route – the annuity – is refusing to go quietly. Here’s why. Consider your pension fund, built up over a working lifetime. On retirement, you could simply draw …