All Opinion articles – Page 43
-
OpinionDoes your scheme offer value for money?
Comparing schemes on value for money is not an easy task. Costs and fees vary in level and structure. Past performance is an imperfect measure of future success.
-
Opinion
How can DC schemes deliver value for money?
There are few more prolific terms overheard in the pensions industry than value for money, and far fewer that evade objective definition quite so comfortably.
-
OpinionWhy we need a default option at retirement
In a world of freedom and choice, the in-retirement stage of the defined contribution journey is potentially fraught with difficulty.
-
OpinionPost-retirement defaults are key to better outcomes
The advent of pension freedoms has meant that the government now expects savers to take responsibility for important financial decisions that could mean the difference between an inadequate retirement or a comfortable one.
-
OpinionWhat we can learn from DC in the US
In the US, the size of the market has driven innovation by pension providers and creates an opportunity for sponsors to provide plans which better engage their workforce.
-
OpinionThe corporate view: Final salary, Care or DC?
The demise of the final salary pension scheme has been well documented in the press. Most employers have put in place a defined contribution scheme to comply with their duty to automatically enrol employees, but does that really reflect the corporate attitude to pensions?
-
OpinionBSPS sets useful example for DB endgame
Making predictions concerning the future of defined benefit pension provision in the UK would be a task for the over-confident or a fool.
-
OpinionThe limitations of financial advice
As with most things in life, there is rarely a single, unequivocal answer to a pensions issue such as how to prepare for retirement. The other factors preventing us from navigating a clear and simple path to the later life we desire are our own personal biases.
-
OpinionThe pensions industry needs more innovators
In today’s digitally connected world, one in which UK financial services companies compete for consumers’ attention, solely investing in the latest systems and software to incentivise customers may not go far enough.
-
OpinionA pensions system to support everyone
Having spent nearly three months as the minister for pensions and financial inclusion, I have been struck by how much we have recently achieved to help the public to think more smartly about retirement, but also the challenges we must face in improving our pensions saving system.
-
OpinionIt's time to rethink trustee standards
From the blog: The Pensions Regulator’s recent findings of large variations in trusteeship standards have thrown up questions about the governance of pension funds.
-
OpinionCheck for early warning signs of pension mistakes
From the blog: It's the nightmare scenario: the Pensions Regulator is due to visit and everyone at the company is filled with dread. What's worse, it turns out they were right to be concerned.
-
OpinionWhich retirement option should your default strategy target?
While the question of what a default option should target is a valid one, it implies a couple of common misconceptions.
-
OpinionThe societal shift hindering good pensions policy
Politicians have a bad habit of tinkering with pensions for short-term gain, but perhaps we can’t really blame them.
-
OpinionAre DGFs really diversified?
From the blog: Over the past five years, diversified growth funds have generally performed well. In fact, all three median DGF series compiled by Camradata met or exceeded their return targets from January 2012 through December 2016.
-
OpinionPractical steps for improving DC savings
These are difficult times for pension savers. The long-term transition away from defined benefit, combined with low wage growth, increased life expectancy and lukewarm market outlooks, means many will find it challenging to achieve the kind of retirement they desire.
-
OpinionWhy do well-funded small schemes struggle to reach buyout?
There are 1m members spread across 5,000 small defined benefit schemes, each with fewer than 1,000 members. Of this number, only a small fraction – around 9 per cent – are still active.
-
OpinionPlastic Lamborghinis: The worrying FCA Retirement Outcomes Review
'I’d like to buy a Lamborghini please!'
-
OpinionSPA increase could hurt under-saved Generation X
While some industries experience peaks and troughs of activity, the pensions industry seems to be in a near constant frenzied state, with the spotlight now falling on the state pension.
-
OpinionHave we finally got a handle on scams?
Pension scams are a growing and wide-ranging problem facing consumers. Around four years ago Phoenix became aware that policyholders were being contacted by fraudsters, trying to trick them into losing their life savings.