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Old Pensions

Old Pensions

  • Monday 09 March 2020

As someone who changed career into the area of Financial Planning, I can empathise a lot with the people I meet. I know how confusing the jargon is, how boring the numbers can be, and I can sometimes share the cynicism about whether this industry is really trying to improve people’s lives or just sell products.

In any line of business, trust is key. It leads to connections and then to relationships, and that’s where everyone wins. Wherever I’ve worked, I always knew that a great way to develop trust was with a ‘quick win’ – something that proved I was looking out for my clients and where they could see immediate value from working with me.

Most Real Financial Planners, including myself, are always keen to stress that the major successes of working with a genuine advisor come over the long term, not straight away. However that doesn’t mean we can’t deliver really quick benefits. In general, they come in 3 areas:

  • Debt
  • Protection Policies
  • Old Pensions

In my next article I’m going to talk about Debt and Life Assurance – two areas where people pay WAY too much a lot of the time. For now though, some thoughts on Old Pensions.

Old Pensions

For anyone starting a Financial Planning Programme, Old Pension Plans are really good place to start. What I mean is that it is extremely easy to get amazing benefit in a relatively simple manner. And by amazing benefit, I’m talking about money – lots of money!

On average, we save or make our clients thousands of euro simply by taking back control of pension schemes that were with old employers, or in forgotten personal plans. So how do we do it?

  • We go through your previous employments and determine whether there might have been a pension scheme that you were a member of. Or, if you were self-employed at some point, a pension you took out yourself through a bank or insurance company.
  • We contact those employers or the pension provider and get details of your plan.
  • We bring them all back under your name in a low-cost account.

While that all seems beneficial, and trust me, our clients see huge value in having all their pension in one location, it’s worth asking how it benefits you financially. Simple really:

  • Most old pensions have very expensive charges and fees. By reducing the management costs (often by 50% or more), you can save thousands in the first year and tens of thousands over the life of the plan.
  • The investments in old schemes are usually not appropriate. They are either too cautious or too aggressive and not delivering risk-appropriate returns. By moving everything into one account (tied to your Financial Plan) we can create an investment strategy that is built just for you.

So, that’s the first ‘quick win’ a Financial Plan can offer you. Thousands of euro in savings or returns simply by taking back control of what was yours in the first place!

Remember, the true long term benefit of working with Financial Planning firms like Curran Futures comes from the support and guidance we offer in delivering the Financial Future you want.

Still though, a quick win is always enjoyable….

     

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