All Pensions articles – Page 66
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Supplier article
Helping employees ensure a good retirement income
By Jonathan Watts-Lay, Director, WEALTH at work, a leading provider of financial education, guidance and advice in the workplaceHoping for the best is not the most effective way to ensure that an individual’s retirement income will be adequate, and employers can help their staff to become more involved in putting ...
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ArticleEmployee Benefits named Pensions/Benefits Publication of the Year 2017
Employee Benefits has been named Pensions/Benefits Publication of the Year at the 2017 Willis Towers Watson Media Awards, winning the accolade for the third consecutive year.The annual industry media awards, now in its twelfth year, recognises excellence in business journalism, focusing on HR, pensions, benefits, insurance, reinsurance and risk, mergers ...
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ArticleFTSE 350 defined benefit pension deficit rises to £145bn
The accounting deficit of defined benefit (DB) pension schemes for the UK’s largest 350 organisations rose by £12 billion from £133 billion at the end of March 2017 to £145 billion at 28 April 2017, according to research by Mercer.Its Pensions risk survey, which is based on projections and analysis ...
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ArticlePoll: 58% unaware of the legislative delay to the money purchase annual allowance reduction
Employee Benefits poll: More than half (58%) of employer respondents are not aware of the legislative delay to the changes to the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA).A poll of www.employeebenefits.co.uk readers, which received 33 responses, found that 42% of respondents are aware that the reduction to the MPAA was not ...
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ArticlePension Schemes Bill 2017 receives Royal Assent
The Pension Schemes Bill 2017, which legislates for greater protections around master trusts, has received Royal Assent.This is the final stage of the bill going through Parliament and becoming an Act, making it law.The Pension Schemes Bill increases protection for members of master trusts, which includes granting The Pensions Regulator ...
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Article51% plan to review their employee benefits package this year
Around half (51%) of employer respondents plan to review their employee benefits package this year, according to research by Jelf Employee Benefits.Its survey of 250 medium and large organisations also found that 24% cite the changes to salary sacrifice as the legislative change that is most likely to trigger a ...
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OpinionLovewell's logic: Pensions allowance controversy continues
The government’s planned reduction of the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA) from £10,000 to £4,000 has always been a somewhat controversial move.It hit the headlines again earlier this week when the government confirmed that it would delay legislating for the reduction to the MPAA after the clauses that would legislate ...
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ArticleSavers access £10.8bn through pension freedoms
Retirement savers have accessed approximately £10.8 billion through the pension freedoms since the pension reforms were introduced in April 2015, according to data from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).Its Flexible payments from pensions: April 2017 report also found that the number of individuals who have received flexible payments from their ...
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ArticleGovernment delays money purchase annual allowance and pensions advice legislation
The government is to delay legislating for the reduction to the money purchase annual allowance (MPAA), and the introduction of the £500 tax-exempt employer-arranged pensions advice allowance.The clauses that would legislate for these provisions have been removed from the Finance Bill 2017, which was debated in the House of Commons ...
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Supplier article
What has been the impact of pension freedoms?
Jonathan Watts-Lay, director, WEALTH at work, comments: “The pension changes have brought a whole new range of options to consider. Individuals now have to think about whether they want an annuity, drawdown, cash or a combination of options; when to access their pension; if it is better to use savings ...
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Supplier article
State pension age rise and retirement planning
From 2019, the state pension age will start to increase for both men and women to reach 66 by 2020. The government is planning further increases, which will raise the state pension age from 66 to 67 between 2026 and 2028.Jonathan Watts-Lay, Director, WEALTH at work, said: “It’s vital those ...
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ArticleGovernment consults on employer debt in multi-employer DB pension schemes
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has launched a consultation on proposed amendments to employer debt legislation for employers in non-segregated defined benefit (DB) multi-employer pension schemes.The consultation, which launched on 21 April, seeks views on the draft The Occupation Pensions Schemes (Employer Debt) (Amendment) Regulations 2017.The regulations would ...
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ArticleHogan Lovells and Scottish Power shortlisted for best pensions strategy
Law firm Hogan Lovells and energy organisation Scottish Power (pictured) have been shortlisted in the best defined contribution (DC) pensions strategy category at the Employee Benefits Awards 2017.The award, sponsored by Aviva and Friends Life, celebrates organisations that have implemented an effective DC pensions strategy, helping employees to engage with ...
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Article39% are somewhat likely to provide access to a Lifetime Isa in the next five years
More than a third (39%) of employer respondents are somewhat likely to provide staff with access to a Lifetime individual savings account (Lisa) over the next five years, according to research by Willis Towers Watson.Its 2016 UK budget survey report, which surveyed 130 employers, also found that 30% of respondents ...
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OpinionFerdinand Lovett: Workplace pensions and the gig economy
Classifying an individual as a worker instead of a self-employed contractor, as in the recent Uber and Citysprint tribunal cases, really matters from a pensions perspective.This is because the definition of 'worker' in the pensions auto-enrolment legislation is almost identical to the one used in employment rights legislation, with little ...
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ArticlePensions Ombudsman rejects Standard Life employee's transfer value complaint
The Pensions Ombudsman has rejected a complaint by a Standard Life employee, which claimed that the organisation mishandled his request for a new cash equivalent transfer value (CETV).The complainant, referred to as Mr T, was a deferred member of The Standard Life staff pension scheme. In March 2016, he requested ...
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ArticleRoyal Mail to close defined benefit pension scheme to future accrual
Postal organisation Royal Mail has confirmed that it will close its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to future accrual.The organisation will close the Royal Mail pension plan to future accrual from 31 March 2018, subject to trustee approval.The closure follows a consultation process, which formed part of the organisation’s 2018 ...
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ArticleFinancial Conduct Authority consults on new financial advice factsheet for employers
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a consultation on proposed guidelines designed to clarify the regulatory framework around financial advice, including the development of a factsheet for employers and pension trustees.The consultation is based around four of the recommendations made in the Financial Advice Market Review (FAMR), which was ...
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ArticleMore than 500,000 employers complete their auto-enrolment duties
More than half a million (503,178) UK employers have completed their pensions auto-enrolment duties as of 31 March 2017, according to research by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).Its Declaration of compliance report, which is based on information submitted by employers when they complete their declaration of compliance documentation, also found that ...
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OpinionMark Smith: Inequalities in survivors' pension rights
The course of true love never did run smooth and nor, it seems, does the law on the pension rights of survivors. Three recent cases show the limits of how far the courts will go in filling the gaps left by Parliament as it struggles to keep up with the ...