Moving monies from one pension to another

Poor_old_gill

Hi All,

I recently left a job- just over 2 months ago- and have been contacting my previous employer about transferring my accumulated pension monies to the scheme of my new employer.

I have so far not heard back from them- is this normal?
Is there a minimum waiting period between transfers?
Has this happened to anyone here before/

g0g

I'm in the process of trying to do it and found it slow enough. I think you need approval from both the fund you're removing from and the fund you're moving to. My own conclusion (might be completely wrong!) has been the place where your funds currently are will take their time on the off-chance you forget about it and leave the money sitting there. No harm I guess having it split into more than one fund as at the end of the day the money is all yours.

GerardKeating

Poor_old_gill wrote: »

Hi All,

I recently left a job- just over 2 months ago- and have been contacting my previous employer about transferring my accumulated pension monies to the scheme of my new employer.

I have so far not heard back from them- is this normal?
Is there a minimum waiting period between transfers?
Has this happened to anyone here before/

Please make sure you take sound financial advice from a professional on this. For example, if the old scheme is a defined benefit scheme , you might be unwise to move it to a defined contribution scheme (as all new / current ) schemes are.

EGavigan

Poor_old_gill wrote: »

Hi All,

I recently left a job- just over 2 months ago- and have been contacting my previous employer about transferring my accumulated pension monies to the scheme of my new employer.

I have so far not heard back from them- is this normal?
Is there a minimum waiting period between transfers?
Has this happened to anyone here before/

You need a financial advisor to review your old pension and advise you on your entitlements under it before you go any further.

If you worked with your last employer for less than 2 years you may be entitled to your contributions back (subject to tax) or you could transfer to another company scheme or a buy out bond or depending on the scheme you may be able to leave the pension there and take a deferred pension (take the entitlement you have accrued at your normal retirement age).

If your old scheme is defined benefit, you might be better off leaving it where it is as with a DB scheme your monies aren't held separately to other members, it is all in one fund and if you leave they have to calculate the transfer value you are entitled to depending on your pension entitlement at your normal retirement age. If the assumptions which they use in calculating your transfer value aren't realised, you will end up with less of a pension than you would have if you left it in the DB scheme. For example if they assumed that the investment return in the years between now and your retirement date would be 5% p.a. and you only achieved an average of 3% p.a. then you would end up with a fund at your retirement age which is not sufficient to pay you the pension you would have got under the DB scheme. With a DB scheme the benefit you get at retirement is 'defined' and it is up to the trustees of the scheme to worry about growing the fund sufficiently to meet that obligation. With a Defined Contribution scheme you and your employer decide how much you are each contributing and it is up to you to worry about growing the fund sufficiently to provide the pension you want i.e. if you take funds out of a DB scheme to a buy out bond, a PRSA or another company (DC) scheme then you are taking over the investment risk.

If your old scheme is defined contribution, it's possible that you might be off better off moving it, if you are moving it to a good pension which has good fund choice with a reasonable charging structure. The reason I say you might be better off moving a DC pension is that most company scheme have a very limited choice of funds which makes it impossible to manage in a manner which optimises growth.

Don't do anything without getting advice first as you can't reverse it later if you make the wrong decision.


The above comments are general in nature and should not be taken as financial advice as no assessment has been undertaken in relation to your financial situation or objectives.

PaulM1977

There is also the option of transferring to a Buy Out Bond if you do not want to transfer to your new employers scheme, based on the set-up including Annual Management Charge allocation rates and any additional fees, but still want to cut all ties from your old employer.

This would only be in the case of a defined contribution scheme, not if it is a Defined Benefit scheme.

Thanks,

PaulM

Poor_old_gill

Thanks for the advice folks