Pensions Dashboard

The long-awaited and anticipated launch of the Pensions Dashboard is due this year.

Steven Cameron, Pensions Director at Aegon, says: “As we move through 2019, we’ll see the start of pension dashboards becoming available, allowing individuals to get information on all of their pensions including their state pension in one place, online. Initially, there may be some gaps but over time, these should be a huge help for people keeping track of multiple pensions, making it easier to work out if they’re on track for the retirement they hope for.”

State Pension rise

From April 2019, the State Pension will rise by around £4.25 a week or £220 a year.

Cold calling ban

On 9 January the Government’s ban on cold calling will come into effect. This is extremely positive news as the average victim lost £91,000 to fraudsters in 2017 according to a report by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Brexit

It’s not yet clear what impact Brexit will have on pensions. Steve Webb, Director of Policy at Royal London says: “By far the biggest issue for everyone’s pensions in 2019 will be how the economy responds to Brexit. Good pensions depend fundamentally on a strong economy.”

Investors should be prepared for a degree of stock market turbulence according to Senior Analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, Nathan Long.

However Alastair McQueen, Head of Savings and Retirement at Aviva, reminds us that we shouldn’t let Brexit take over our retirement planning. He says, “Whatever Brexit brings, our society will be ageing; our customers will still need to save; and our industry will still have a responsibility to serve. Amidst all the heat, let’s not lose sight of those unchanging truths.”

Workplace pension contributions to rise

From April 2019, under auto-enrolment rules, the minimum contributions into a workplace pension will increase as follows:

• Employee contributions rise from 3% to 5%
• Employer contributions rise from 2% to 3%