Category Archives: customer service

Green shield stamps ( how to buy a pension)

Lawrence Churchill of NEST and John Hutton (of the report) spoke eloquently yesterday of the need for people to focus on a desired retirement outcome (for instance;-“I want an income of £15,000 pa”) work out what it takes to get it … Continue reading

Posted in customer service, de-risking, NEST, Retirement, social media | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Corporate wraps for the Sunny Uplands ?

Today I’m due to spend all day discovering what the corporate wrap has done for us. Currently I reckon I could sum it up in one word. NOTHING Of course it sounds better with a naughty word but that’ll do. … Continue reading

Posted in corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, pension playpen, Retail Distribution Review, Retirement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pension choices for smaller companies

Smaller companies– those with less than 50 employees are the beating heart of Britain’s economy. It is from among their number that the next Virgin or Tesco will come and though many of them will be toast in ten years … Continue reading

Posted in annuity, corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, pension playpen, pensions, Personal Accounts, Retail Distribution Review, Retirement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Regulator, wisdom and the crowd

The Pension Regulator, it needs be said , did not have a good Professional Pension Show. Things started well enough with a keynote speech that laid out its 2012 agenda Get DB solvent Get DC sorted Get Auto-Enrolment in Simples… And that … Continue reading

Posted in annuity, corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, Fiduciary Management, Liability Driven Investment, NEST | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

It’s the legacy, stupid!

If we really care about retirement outcomes, we have to think about this stuff and the £20bn of unclaimed (orphaned) pensions that are hanging around in the back cupboards of life companies and occupational pension schemes alike. Continue reading

Posted in annuity, corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, Liability Driven Investment, Martin Lewis, pensions, Treasury | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The ACA have spoken – the DWP ought to listen

Let’s hope that instead of issuing yet more consultation documents on the policing of the auto enrolment regulations, the Government will , through its key Departments, DWP and the Treasury, start getting us excited about the prospect of this new order. Otherwise this new pension paradigm will degenerate, as its Stakeholder predecessor degenerated, into a fearful, unloved, unadopted and unenforced mess.

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Posted in annuity, corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, pensions, Personal Accounts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

There are better ways to de-risk than ETVs

The only pension schemes which you cannot transfer out of are the Basic State Pension, State Second Pension and NEST (yes – odd that a DC plan is in that mix). Continue reading

Posted in corporate governance, customer service, dc pensions, de-risking, EU Solvency II, Liability Driven Investment, NEST, Retirement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

What NESTCorp is costing us

I wonder why NEST Corp’s own staff pension contributions cannot be accommodated within NEST , saving future member’s the burden of £3.6m pa in interest payments.

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Posted in customer service, dc pensions, NEST | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Should employers be bothered about their pensioners?

Seems a stupid question to those of us involved in running defined benefit schemes. Pensioners of defined benefit pension schemes are the happy beneficiaries of their companies foresight and generosity in establishing and maintaining that pension. Organisations that have established … Continue reading

Posted in annuity, customer service, dc pensions, Retirement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

Culling seals

I  have a new phrase in my vocabulary which relates to the activities of financial institutions that take advantage of the inertia of customers. I cannot tell you about the context in which I learned about this phrase as I am … Continue reading

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