Your retirement income now and later
Pensions will probably be a part of your retirement income and you can access them at different times and in different ways. But you might want to look at other ways to boost your money too, especially if you’d like to leave something behind for loved ones, or put some funds aside for care costs that might be needed later on. We’ll look at your current plans and ways you could withdraw some of your money to use as income, and regularly review your retirement fund to try and make sure it suits your needs, especially if your circumstances have changed.
Claiming your state pension
When you reach state pension age, you’ll be able to claim your state pension, if you’re eligible, even if you’re still working. You’ll get a letter from the Pension Service telling you what to do a few months before your pension age. It’s worth checking your national insurance record at gov.uk to get an idea of what you might be entitled to.
Claiming workplace and personal pensions
Depending on your provider, you’ll usually be able to access personal and workplace pensions from age 55 onwards and 25% of the pot will be tax-free. Your pension provider will give you options around how you’d prefer to have it paid. Check gov.uk for information to find out more about the options.
If you choose to use your retirement funds as income (drawdown), and you take too much too quickly, you could use up or empty your fund altogether, so it might be worth speaking to a financial adviser before making any decisions.
Other income
Pensions aren’t the only way to fund your retirement, so if you’d like to discuss ways you might be able to boost your retirement savings on top of your pension, we might be able to help.
How we could help you
It doesn’t cost anything to see if we could help you with your retirement plans.
Our Financial Advice Service is available if you can invest or reinvest at least £20,000, or can commit to investing at least £500 per month.
If you’d like advice on your current investments/pensions, the minimum value required is £50,000.
Call 0800 731 5342 for a free initial chat to see if you could benefit from financial advice. There’s no obligation to act - our No Pressure Promise makes sure of that. You won’t incur any charges unless you act on our recommendations and any charge will be clearly explained to you.