By Matthew Kneller

There are a myriad of choices confronting those coming up to retirement in terms of switching on an income from their accumulated pension fund.

On one side of the spectrum there are Conventional Annuities guaranteed to provide an income for life and on the other side of the spectrum there is Income Drawdown whereby an income is drawn down from a pension fund that continues to be invested. There are also a whole host of additional options in between.

Although purchasing an annuity often appears to be the simplest option, it is rather inflexible and, once purchased, a conventional annuity cannot be changed irrespective of any changes in your personal circumstances.

Annuity provider LV= has commissioned research that suggests that the first five years of retirement typically brings with it life changes which have a substantial impact on an individual’s finances in retirement.

The significant changes that people face include:

  • Birth of grandchild (38%)
  • Worsening health (31%)
  • Needing to help family members financially (26%)
  • Carrying out significant work to property and / or garden (24%)
  • Moving house (19%)
  • Receiving an inheritance (10%)
  • Being diagnosed with a serious illness (10%)
  • Being widowed (4%)
  • Returning to work (3%)
  • Relocating to another country (2%)

It is therefore important to consider the full range of options available when you are looking to turn on an income in retirement rather than simply look at purchasing an annuity.

Fresh Perspective can help you assess which retirement option is likely to be the most beneficial for you, whether it be a Conventional Annuity, an Enhanced Annuity, a Unit Linked Annuity, A Fixed Term Annuity, Income Drawdown or a combination of these.

To discuss your retirement options, please do get in touch with Matthew Kneller on 01249 700404 or email matthew.kneller@fp-fp.co.uk

Disclaimer

This article contains the current opinions of the author and does not represent a personal recommendation. Information contained herein has been obtained from reliable sources but cannot be guaranteed. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission from Fresh Perspective Financial Planning Ltd.