Smallest businesses face £22m of fines over auto-enrolment pensions confusion August 8, 2016 UK micro-businesses are collectively facing fines of up to £22m due to a lack of understanding around auto-enrolment pensions, a new report has warned. The Pensions Regulator estimates that around 262,000 micro-businesses, defined as firms employing between one and four people, are set to “stage” – or be required to set up a workplace pension [...]
Work and Pensions committee takes next step in inquiry into state of play of pensions August 8, 2016 MPs have today issued a call for evidence for an inquiry on the state of defined benefit (DB) pensions, with the roles of the pensions watchdog and lifeboat in particular thrust under the microscope. The inquiry by the Work and Pensions committee was sparked by its recent investigation into the pensions situation at BHS. The retailer had [...]
How crowdfunding can give you an income boost in a low-rate wasteland August 4, 2016 With the Bank of England widely expected to cut interest rates this afternoon, savers are bracing themselves for a further drop in the already pitiful returns they are earning on deposit accounts. According to data from comparison site Moneyfacts, the average five-year fixed rate bond offered an interest rate of just 2 per cent in [...]
Tighter pensions rules urged to avoid BHS-style failures August 3, 2016 The Pensions Institute has issued a stark warning over businesses "milking and dumping" pension schemes, as it called on the government to do more to prevent this. It came after a study by Keith Wallace, president of the Association of Corporate Trustees and author of the report, found dozens of examples of businesses exploiting surpluses and shedding deficits in [...]
Ros Altmann is right: It’s time to scrap the state pension triple-lock August 1, 2016 As with many contemporary policy debates, the furore over the state pension triple-lock has its roots with Gordon Brown. Back in 1999, when Brown was chancellor, the state pension was increased by 75p per week. “Derisory”, claimed pensioner groups. Only “enough to buy a packet of peanuts”, bemoaned national newspapers. Scarred by the backlash, political [...]
Auto-enrolment contribution rates are far too low says Webb July 27, 2016 Former pensions minister Steve Webb demanded that more needs to be done to encourage saving for retirement after the latest auto-enrolment data was released today. Four years after the Pension Regulator introduced the initiative, six million people – or 66 per cent of the working population – have now signed up for the workplace pension. But the concern is that [...]
Here are the key challenges the new pensions minister will face July 27, 2016 The recent reshuffle meant a whole host of new ministerial faces both at the Treasury and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). These new ministers will have a full agenda when it comes to pensions. At DWP, the new secretary of state is Damian Green, who will be responsible for controlling welfare spending and getting people back [...]
Women have some catching up to do with their pension pots July 20, 2016 Ladies are lagging behind gentlemen in the retirement savings stakes, research out today has found. The study by Aegon UK found a mere 10 per cent of women are prepared for retirement, compared with 14 per cent of men. Women's pensions pots look particular measly in comparison to men's, with women having £20,000 stashed away on average [...]
Retiring to Europe? You should wait until Brexit negotiations on pensions and healthcare access have concluded July 20, 2016 Many Brits approaching retirement dream of moving to the continent. But Brexit has thrown a spanner in the works. Since the referendum, sterling has plummeted against a basket of foreign currencies, including the euro, and question marks loom over expats’ ability to settle elsewhere in Europe. Things look even more chaotic when it comes to financial [...]
Pension auto-enrolment is getting more UK workers saving for the future July 20, 2016 In a sign that UK workers are starting to save again since the financial crisis hit, new data shows that the total annual pension contributions made in the UK has increased by nearly a fifth since 2010. Analysis of HMRC data by Prudential shows workers paid £9.03bn into pensions in 2014-15, up from the £7.71bn contributed in 2010-11. [...]