2 October 2024
Can I inherit my late father’s pension, and will I owe inheritance tax?Can you explain how Inheritance Tax (IHT) will impact my pensions? My father worked for the NHS for 35 years and recently passed away – will I inherit anything from this pension? He also had a small defined contribution pension. And what could happen to at the Budget in relation to pensions and IHT? I’ve tried to do my own research but it’s...
1 October 2024
Pension withdrawals jump to £52 billion in cost-of-living crisisInflation may have returned closer to ‘normal’ levels in recent months, but three years of spiking prices and rising interest rates has had a huge impact on Brits’ retirement plans, with both the number of people accessing their pension and the amount withdrawn surging in the 2023/24 tax year.
Savers withdrew over £52 billion from their retirement...
21 September 2024
How to: use the pension finder toolIf you’ve had several jobs, you’ll probably have several pensions, and if you've found yourself wondering about some long-forgotten pension pots, you're not alone! AJ Bell's pension finder can help you track down your old pensions and bring them all together in an AJ Bell SIPP. Here's a handy guide to using the AJ Bell pension finder tool.
19 September 2024
Are you one of the 10 million Brits with an old pension?Brits hold 10 million pension accounts in old ‘closed book’ non-workplace pensions worth a total of £250 billion, a Freedom of Information request from AJ Bell has found.
Closed book pensions are no longer open to new customers. Although some products may still represent good value, closed book providers have limited incentive to compete on cost...
12 September 2024
Three priorities for Labour’s first BudgetThe first Budget for new Chancellor Rachel Reeves is coming at the end of October. The rumour mill has already geared up with speculation on what could be included, but we’ve laid out three key areas the Government could focus on when it comes to people’s investments and savings.
ISA simplificationAt a time when government is facing significant...
27 August 2024
Is it worth setting up my own pension?With prices of just about everything still going up it might be hard to think about putting money away for the future but, according to the latest government figures, the number of personal pension savers in the UK keeps rising. As of 2023, government statistics show there are now 6.8 million of us using pensions to help build a retirement nest egg...
27 August 2024
Can property really be your pension?If you’re thinking about using property to fund your retirement, you wouldn’t be the first. The post-financial crisis boom in house prices, propelled by low interest rates and government support schemes, led many budding property tycoons towards investing in buy to let instead of saving in a pension. For many, that gamble probably paid off, thanks...
21 August 2024
Why invest?In the opening chapter of our ‘Investing for beginners’ video series, Dan Coatsworth details several benefits of investing, including capital growth, dividends and beating inflation.
16 August 2024
Seven ways to beat the death taxThe death tax is dubbed Britain’s most hated tax, but only around 1 in 20 estates pay it. Those numbers are rising, along with the amount of money HMRC is raking in each year.
If you’re concerned that your estate might have to pay inheritance tax (IHT) when you’re gone, there are things you can do to reduce (or even eliminate) the amount it will...
9 August 2024
Why people have been taxed £1.3bn too much on their pensionsNew figures show that people have been taxed £57m too much on withdrawals from their pensions in the past three months, as the total amount of over-taxation hits almost £1.3bn.
Data from HMRC shows that in April, May and June over 16,000 reclaim forms were processed during the quarter from people who had been hit with higher tax bills than...
3 August 2024
What to do with your pension in your 40sWhen it comes to saving for retirement many of us bury our heads in the sand. It’s easy to leave it so long that you fall into the trap of feeling it is too late to start. However, this is not the case and there are lots of things that savers in their 40s should be thinking about as they build their retirement pot.
It’s never too late to startAlth...
3 August 2024
What to do with your pension in your 50sAs you enter your sixth decade you will be getting closer to retirement, meaning you will be planning for it and thinking about when and how to take a retirement income. Here are the main things you need to think about with pensions in your 50s.
Accessing your pensionIf you’re aged 55 or over then you have the option to access your defined...
31 July 2024
What to expect in October’s Budget following the Chancellor’s public finance updateThe Chancellor has signaled to the public that tax rises are extremely likely at the Budget on 30 October, pointing to what she claims is a £20 billion black hold in the public finances.
During the election campaign Rachel Reeves and Keir Starmer, now Chancellor and Prime Minister respectively, were at pains to insist they wouldn’t raise income tax...
17 June 2024
How to combine your different pension potsLots of people will have multiple pensions from different employers, and it’s tricky to keep track of them all. But by taking charge of your pensions, you can evaluate your current savings and have your whole pot in one place to more easily manage. You might be pleasantly surprised by your existing savings, but regardless, being informed empowers...
17 June 2024
How our personal finances have changed under a Tory GovernmentThe Conservatives came to power in 2010, and during that time there have been a raft of changes to our personal finances. There have been some bold and positive achievements in the past 14 years, though it is by no means an entirely rosy picture, and to the extent that welfare spending falls under the heading of personal finance, the austerity...
12 June 2024
How to build your first pension or expand an existing oneCreating a plan for your retirement savings now could put you in a better position later in life. You will thank yourself for getting your finances in order – it should not take long and could bring peace of mind knowing that you have a pension strategy in place.
The first step is to find out if you have existing pension assets. Certain people...
20 May 2024
How to combine your pensions into one potSince automatic enrolment was introduced in 2012, meaning more people were contributing to a pension with their employer, lots more people will now have small pension pots with different companies. Pension savers throughout the UK have been forced to wait for a solution that means they can access all their pensions in one place – which would help...
24 August 2023
Consolidating your pensionLisa Webster, Technical Resources Consultant at AJ Bell, discusses the benefits of consolidating your pension, and what you need to consider when transferring a pension.
6 April 2023
What do the new pension rules mean for me? Untitled DocumentA new tax year brings a fresh set of allowances, but at his recent Budget, the Chancellor also increased what was on offer for pension savers in this new tax year, too.
You can read about the changes and how they impact your own finances below.
What has changed? Annual pension allowancesThe changes that will affect most people...
13 March 2023
How much can I pay into my SIPP?It should be an easy question for investors to answer. But because of pension rules, working out how much you can pay into your SIPP takes a bit of homework.
In this article, I’ll explain how these pension rules work, and what to think about when calculating how much you can pay in.
This article gives you information and tips, but isn’t tax...
2 March 2023
Three top tax tips for SIPPs Untitled DocumentSIPPs can be a great way to boost your retirement savings. Not only do investments in a SIPP grow free of tax, but tax relief from the government generously top ups the money you pay in.
As SIPP tax relief is so valuable, I’ve drawn up three top tips to make the most of it. That includes how to shield yourself from a potential...
4 January 2023
Change to capital gains tax rules – what you need to knowOver the next two years, the tax-free allowance for capital gains is being slashed by over 75%. In this article I discuss the rules on capital gains tax and five ways you can reduce your potential tax bill.
Whilst this article contains information and tips – it is not tax advice or a personal recommendation. If you need help with tax or your...
26 October 2022
Rishi Sunak’s in-tray: 5 taxing questions for the new prime ministerAs the new prime minister Rishi Sunak enters No. 10, he faces difficult decisions over a range of tax, pensions and economic issues which remain unanswered after months of debate and discussion through the leadership contest and the fallout from last month’s mini-Budget.
AJ Bell experts consider 5 key questions awaiting the new prime minister:
Inc...
7 October 2022
FCA warns over 'misdirection' scams risk as a quarter of savers eye early pension access during cost of living crisisAs inflation tightens its grip on Brits’ finances and millions of households face up to the prospect of spiralling mortgage bills as interest rates rocket, it is inevitable scammers will increase their activity as they look to prey on rising vulnerability.
Recently published data shows the number of savers accessing their retirement pots for the...
11 August 2022
4 in 10 retirees alter pension withdrawals as inflation surges and recession loomsFour-in-ten retirees drawing an income from their private pension are changing the amount of money they take from their pot in response to the double whammy of struggling markets and the rising cost of living.
The data comes from a survey carried out by investment platform AJ Bell Youinvest with over 1,000 of its customers that draw an income from...
