Historically, we worked 30 or 40 years with the same employer.
Then retired and received our pension.
In the modern day, this is not the norm.
It’s now more common for us to change jobs more frequently.
We go in search of a higher salary, better benefits, more prosperous career prospects.
Maybe even for self-employment if we have that entrepreneurial streak in us.
One of the main employee benefits we normally receive from our employers is a pension.
All too often when we change jobs, one thing that gets forgotten about is our pension.
The issue
When we change jobs, one thing that often slips unnoticed is our pension.
Particularly if it’s a defined contribution (DC) pension fund.
If you are a member of an employers DC pension, when you leave service you will (or should) be given a ‘Leaving Service Options’ statement.
This outlines simply what your options are with that fund.
However, what happens, more often than not, is that then gets put with other paperwork in the second drawer and is left there.
We don’t give it another thought and the pension remains under the ownership of the Trustees of the scheme.
You may move address and the Trustees don’t have a contact address for you.
If the Trustees are your previous employer, they could potentially go out of business.
This in particular creates an even larger issue.
So time goes by and you think you had a fund but you are no longer 100% sure where it is, how it’s performing or what the benefits are.
Or, you know you have a fund and you know where it is but have no idea what it’s doing, what it’ll provide or want to do a deeper dive on it.
What to do
If you have an old benefit statement of any age, let us know.
If you don’t have a benefit statement but have any details on who the administrator or employer was, we can try and work off that.
We will trace your pension down for you.
We will do a deep dive on the pension, covering various aspects like asset allocation, benefits and charges.
At least you will then know what the pension is expected to give you.
Alternatively, if you know where the pension is, we can still carry out this deep dive for you.
Our review service will cover off all aspects of the pension and we will outline the ins and outs of the funds you have.
Why review and trace your pension?
A recent report I read claimed there is an estimated €500m in unclaimed pensions in Ireland.
Simply put, if you were a member of a pension scheme before, it’s your money.
You’re entitled to it.
But for dealing with a bit of paper work, lets locate it.
Some reasons to review your pensions are:
- Ongoing fees and charges
- Your attitude to and capacity for risk
- Get a handle on the benefits and the inadequacy of the state pension
- Potential access to benefits if you are over age 50
Recently, I wrote an article providing further information on these reasons, you can access it here.
Another reason, significantly. If you leave it under the ownership of the Trustees, they decide when you access the pension.
This can prove difficult if they are difficult to track down.
A recent client of mine, it took us in the region of 6 months to track the Trustees down.
That caused a 6 month delay in him getting his tax free cash that he was entitled to.
A simple pension trace and review will remove that potential future complication and give you knowledge.
Checklist
If you are unsure of what to consider, think about the following:
- Were you a member of a previous employers scheme?
- Can you recall making pension contributions via salary deduction?
- Are you holding any supporting documentation like a member booklet, a policy certificate or even payslips showing pension deductions?
- Has any of your previous employers merged with another company?
If the answer to any of the above is yes it could be worth trying to trace your old pension.
How we help you.
You can avail of our pension tracing service.
We will try and track down your old pensions for you.
Then, when we have the information, we will provide you with knowledge of where they are and what they look like.
Once that is done we can then review your options with you.
What you can and can’t do and more importantly what you should do.
We can help you if
- You’ve changed jobs recently or in the past and want to trace and review your old pensions
- Have a collection of pensions and want to review them
- Are looking to potentially consolidate your old pensions
What we need from you
If you hold any basic information on your pensions it would be a great help.
Simple stuff like details of your old employer, maybe even a contact name or an address.
The years you worked in that employment.
Maybe you’re holding an old benefit statement or leaving service options statement.
Or a member booklet or any other branded correspondence you received.
We will then get you to sign an authority allowing us to gather all the necessary information.
I Want To Review or Find My Pensions
Summary
All too often pensions get lost when people change jobs.
This is money the individuals are entitled to.
But for a bit of short term paperwork pain, the long term advantages of taking stock, tracing, and review outweigh the short term inconvenience.
As per the report I mentioned approximately €500m sits in unclaimed pensions.
Don’t let your own pots add to that number.
Interested in tracing and/or reviewing your old pensions?
Request a callback or book straight into the diary.
Otherwise, give me a call on 086 0080 756 or provide your details, info@fortitudefp.ie.
We have over 30 articles we’ve written on various subjects and they can be accessed here.
A wealth of free information covering all aspects of saving, investing, financial planning, protection and pension advice.
Francis McTaggart CFP® SIA RPA QFA
These blog posts are intended for information purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial advice.
You should always engage the services of a fully qualified financial planner before entering any financial contract.
To discuss engaging the services of Fortitude Financial Planning please email us at info@fortitudefp.ie.
Fortitude Financial Planning Ltd will not be held responsible for any actions taken as a result of reading these blog posts.
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