Chancellor decides to keep triple lock in place. The state pension is set to rise by 8.5% from April 2024, as chancellor Jeremy Hunt confirmed the triple lock remains in place in today’s Autumn Statement. ‘We honour our commitments to the triple lock in full,’ said Hunt. In the run-up to the Autumn Statement, there were reports that the government …
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 …
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 …
Small pension pot withdrawals avoid triggering MPAA tax charge
Advisers can prevent clients from triggering the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA) by ensuring they draw money from small pension pots of £10,000 and under, according to new analysis from Royal London. Advisers can prevent clients from triggering the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA) by ensuring they draw money from smaller pension pots, according to new analysis from Royal London. …
FCA fines Standard Life Assurance £30m over annuity sales failures
Standard Life has been fined £30.7 million by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) over failures in selling non-advised annuities. The regulator took action against Standard Life Assurance, now owned by closed-book pension provider Phoenix, over enhanced annuity sales between July 2008 and May 2016. ‘Standard Life Assurance failed to put in place adequate controls to monitor the quality of the …
FCA proposes new pension freedom rules
The FCA says it expects firms to “challenge themselves on the level of charges they impose on investment pathways” and could consider imposing a cap. The FCA is consulting on new measures to stop consumers losing out on pension income when they access their pension freedoms. The regulator has previously expressed concern about consumers moving into drawdown and holding their …