Delegates at the ILC-UK Retirement Income Summit, supported by Aviva and Partnership, were asked to vote on a series of policy related questions. The results were as follows
2. Q. What proportion of the UK population are
saving into private pension schemes?
40%
1. One in ten
2. One in five 28%
25%
3. One in three
4. Half
7%
5. Seven in ten
0%
1 2 3 4 5
3. Q. The Government’s recent White Paper on pension
scheme transfers and small pension pots estimated
that there are in excess of how many pension pots in
the UK pension system worth £2000 or less?
1. 50,000 48%
2. 100,000
3. 350,000 25%
4. 650,000 16%
9%
5. 1 million 3%
1 2 3 4 5
4. Q. According to Aviva’s most recent Real Retirement
Report (March 2012), the median income of 65-74
year olds is:
1. £623 46%
2. £923 36%
3. £1,318
18%
1 2 3
5. Q. The RDR will result in an advice gap for
people with small pension pots
1. Yes 79%
2. No
3. Don’t know
13%
8%
1 2 3
6. Q. Government should set a pension savings target
to reduce the likelihood of people ending up in
retirement with small pension pots.
1. Agree 54%
2. Disagree
34%
3. Don’t know
11%
1 2 3
7. Q. Do you think the existing constraints on
NEST should be removed now?
1. Agree 44%
37%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 20%
1 2 3
8. Post RDR financial advice may be
beyond the means of the average
person. How can we fill the advice
gap?
9. Q. Regulated advice should be taken by the majority
of investors at the point of retirement?
1. Agree 46% 47%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
7%
1 2 3
10. Q. The Government should consider some
simple defaults for annuity purchase?
1. Agree 65%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 29%
5%
1 2 3
11. Q. Consumer outcomes would be improved if
simplified advice was made workable.
1. Agree 84%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
6% 10%
1 2 3
12. Q. All pension accumulators should offer
maturing pensions a shopping around service.
1. Agree 68%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
22%
10%
1 2 3
13. Q. Advised and non-advised annuity services should
be subject to the same cost transparency
requirements.
1. Agree 83%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
10% 7%
1 2 3
14. Q. Government and industry should develop detailed
proposals to simplify the pensions transfer process.
1. Agree 82%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
12%
6%
1 2 3
15. Q. A simplified advice route for average-sized
[pension] pots would strike a better balance than we
currently have.
1. Agree 74%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
19%
7%
1 2 3
16. Q. Creating default options for annuities could
enable the pensions market to take advantage of
technology in the same way as the general insurance
market.
49%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
27%
3. Don’t know 24%
1 2 3
17. Good regulation protects the consumer
but it must not inadvertently damage the
potential of products and services to
increase pensioner income? How can we
ensure that the length and complexity of
communications required by legislation
does not damage communications?
18. Q. Strict regulation is suffocating innovation in the
industry and resulting in consumer detriment.
42% 43%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 15%
1 2 3
19. Q. All policyholders approaching retirement or asking to
take their pension are given a 1 page letter that says:
Dear [Policyholder]
You have £ [40000] that you need to decide how to take as an income in
retirement.
The difference between a good and bad decision could be worth around
£[8000 i.e. 20% of the fund] to you over your retirement. It could be more
or less depending on your personal circumstances.
The details you need to make a decision are included with this letter.
[Attach standard pack of information]
cont …
20. If you are in any doubt about what to do then the Government believes
you should take advice.
Advisers who specialise in helping people at retirement can be found
at: www.expertretirementhelp.co.uk or by calling free 0800 XXX XXX. All
the advisers there are regulated and have been assessed as meeting a
minimum standard.
Please take the time to make the right decision for you.
Yours sincerely
Your Pension Company
#retirementincome
21. Q. All policyholders approaching retirement or
asking to take their pension are given a 1 page letter
that says:
64%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 31%
5%
1 2 3
22. Q. The industry should agree a standard discharge
form to release funds from the ceding provider to the
receiving provider and this is integrated into the
annuity application form.
74%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 17%
10%
1 2 3
23. Q. The literature provided by financial companies is
compromised by regulatory requirements.
55%
1. Agree
35%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
9%
1 2 3
24. Q. The birth of the Financial Conduct Authority
is good for consumers.
56%
1. Agree
2. Disagree 27%
3. Don’t know 17%
1 2 3
25. Q. Less favourable rates for pooled annuities are a
price worth paying for a more efficient market in
which underwriting puts the focus on the individual.
40%
36%
1. Agree
24%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
1 2 3
26. Q. Just as over-regulating creates costs for
consumers, gold-plating the advice provided to
customers whose needs are not complex is not in
the public interest.
81%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
14%
5%
1 2 3
27. Q. Non-advised solutions combined with increased
public financial education, transparent
communications and appropriate ‘nudge’ techniques
can help people getting better value from their
pension savings.
85%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
9%
5%
1 2 3
28. Q. Annuity providers should include medical
questionnaires in all maturity packs to increase
demand for automatic underwriting in annuities.
56%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
26%
3. Don’t know 19%
1 2 3
29. People with average sized pension
pots are entitled to reasonable
outcomes. How can we improve
the pension’s annuity process for
the consumer and industry?
30. Q. Occupational schemes should follow the same
principles as outlined in the ABI’s Code of Conduct
on Retirement Choices, either through a code of
conduct or through TPR rules.
77%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
14%
9%
1 2 3
31. Q. Occupational schemes should follow the same
principles as outlined in the ABI’s Code of Conduct
on Retirement Choices, either through a code of
conduct or through TPR rules.
88%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
5% 7%
1 2 3
32. Q. Is the ‘pot follows member’ option for
accumulating small pensions pots is workable in
practice?
36% 34%
1. Agree 30%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
1 2 3
33. Q. Should benchmark annuity rates for non-open
market annuity providers should be published?
80%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
14%
7%
1 2 3
34. Q. All annuities should be individually underwritten,
taking account of health and lifestyle factors.
47%
44%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
9%
1 2 3
35. Q. Automatic pensions transfers should work on the
principle that the pension pot follows the customer
from job to job.
51%
1. Agree
37%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know
12%
1 2 3
36. Q. Automatic pensions transfers should only apply
to automatic enrolment pots, to ensure similar
quality standards.
46%
1. Agree 38%
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 16%
1 2 3
37. Q. Automatic pensions transfers should
transfer pots into a central clearing house.
44%
1. Agree 31%
2. Disagree 25%
3. Don’t know
1 2 3
38. Q. Industry should improve the flow of information from the current
pension scheme to the member and their adviser and to release the
monies to the new provider more easily and quickly.
Q. Automatic pensions transfers should transfer pots into a central
clearing house.
95%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
3. Don’t know 3% 2%
1 2 3
39. Q. The RDR will result in an advice gap for people with small pension
pots
69%
1. Agree
2. Disagree
16% 15%
3. Don’t know
1 2 3