Roll over, and get your discounted toaster…
By Andrew Laisby, 14 May 2012 –
It is fairly common knowledge that when you wish to draw the benefits from a Personal Pension you can take your monies to another provider in order to receive an income. I will not go into the various options, those are for discussion another day in another blog, but something happened recently that made me laugh, actually out of embarrassment.
One of my clients was nearing his normal retirement date (the date he will draw his Personal Pension). I received copies of the correspondence from his current provider, a weighty tome, in which they were quoting all sorts of options as to how he may like to draw his benefits; the usual minefield for the unwary.
However, a glossy booklet suddenly slipped (from amidst what was probably a very nice tree at some time in the past), floated to the floor and tried to hide under the corner of my desk. After much huffing and puffing (I don’t do bending over) I managed to extract said booklet and after the blood had returned to my body from my head, I scrutinised it.
What I found was a booklet which exclaimed that if my client decided to leave his monies with his original provider and draw his retirement benefits from them that he could enjoy discounts off electrical items. They started with £10 off a toaster, £15 off a kettle and some few pages later, bypassing the fridges and dishwashers £150 off a television (an overpriced one at that).
Now this may all have been fine and dandy, IF the clients existing provider were the most competitive provider, AND what they were offering was the most appropriate method of drawing his benefits!
A quick check of the Open Market proved that whilst my client’s current provider had offered acceptable returns with reasonable charges whilst he was saving for retirement, they were not even close to being the best provider for his retirement benefits, by some £375 per year. If we assume my client had fallen for a shiny new toaster and lived for 10 years this could have been the most expensive toaster in history.
So, if you receive such an offer, or even do not currently have a relationship with a Financial Planner, contact us. And the name of the offending company, I am too much of a gentleman to say!