Poor pension control highlights need for annuity advice
27/08/2009
Rebecca Sargent
Two million UK adults are unsure of where their pension money is invested, research from Lincoln Financial Group has revealed.
The study also found that 48 per cent of pension holders say that they rarely review their pension options once they have made the investment.
This lack of awareness "demonstrates that more still needs to be done to ensure consumers are aware of the Open Market Option," according to Lincoln Financial Group.
The Open Market Option allows pension holders to benefit from the most competitive annuity rates in the market, but as millions of pension holders fail to take control, more needs to be done to make people aware of this option, Lincoln Financial Group Claims.
Head of products and marketing at the Group, Simon O'Connor said: "With people not taking the time to review their pension options, it is not surprising that the majority are still unaware of the Open Market Option and so fail to shop around to get the best annuity rate for them on retirement.
"More needs to be done by the Government and the industry to ensure consumers are aware of their annuity options and make sure they get the best retirement product for their circumstances."
Commenting on the failure to review pension investments, he adds: "It is extremely worrying to see that so many British adults seem to overlook the importance of this decision and fail to prioritise a review of their retirement needs."
It is particularly concerning because shopping around for the best pension annuity could boost pensioners' incomes. Mr O'Connor adds: "Flexible annuity products carry increasingly important benefits in the current climate, such as helping to protect a pension pot against the effects of inflation and providing the option of an income guarantee."
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