Like most products and services, pension plans come with charges. These charges range from the fantastically low to the ridiculously high and paying more than you should be will eat away at your savings. In most cases paying more doesn’t mean you’ll get a better service. Often the reverse is true, which means you are effectively paying money for nothing. That’s why it is so important to check your pension regularly, to make sure you are getting the best value for money possible.
What pension charges could I be paying?
Free pension information guideWhy are some pension providers cheaper than others?
Annoyingly, higher pension provider charges do not normally mean a better level of service. Often, these higher charges come down to using old-fashioned systems and a lack of development.
Computers, the internet and digital administration are nothing new. And yet some providers still insist on a paper-based system. As you can imagine, this makes processes slower and more expensive. So, you end up paying more money for a worse service.
On top of this, some pension products have not been reviewed or updated for years. Providers have either forgotten or are hoping that you don’t notice the over-inflated charges you are paying.
Good, modern pension schemes use technology to make everything more efficient, which generally means a better service for less money.
What if I am not paying any pension charges?
A few years ago, with profits pensions were fairly popular. And if you have one of these pensions you may have been sold on the fact that there are no charges. Sound too good to be true?
While fees associated with these types of scheme are not transparent, you will definitely be paying somewhere along the line. And, in our opinion, there are a lot of other issues surrounding with profits pensions, so it is well worth taking the time to get them checked, if you have one.
