Just recently moved my old work pension to Vanguard seem to have very reasonable fees.
How much do you need for comfortable existence in retirement.
- Thread starter newbiejim
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Just to add to this though, you can invest in Vanguard funds through other providers. Part of my holding is with Fidelity but invested in Vanguard funds (as it worked out marginally cheaper with fee considerations).
Yeah it's definitely a 'do your own research' type of thing, because everyone's circumstances are different. I'm currently using HL, but only because there are certain funds I want to be invested in that Vanguard don't offer, and I'm sucking up the high charges to be in those funds for now. Eventually I will just port the lot over to Vanguard though for drawdown. I think if you want a simple 'set up and forget for years' pension then Vanguard is hard to beat.
Soldato
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Somewhat relevant question: I've just transferred my work pension to Vanguard as I'd like it to track the S&P if possible. It has all moved across now, but do my worplace pension contributions now automatically go to Vanguard, or will they go to my old pension provider? Neither Vanguard nor the previous one are showing any transactions and I was paid on the 25th.
They'll go to your old provider unless you've specifically asked your company to change where they pay to.
Payments are usually a bit behind due to processing etc, mine used to hit around 3 weeks after my payday.
Payments are usually a bit behind due to processing etc, mine used to hit around 3 weeks after my payday.
Soldato
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Thanks for that. I have no idea who administrate our pensions in the company, so I will have to find who to speak to. The weird thing, though, is that my policy with Scottish Widows doesn't seem to exist any more.
Mine are normally really fast at processing it. I've never had to wait 5 days I don't think, though I suppose there has been a weekend inbetween.
I guess the other factor is how senior you are and to whether they'll accept it. It's a lot easier to just make a huge company wide payment than to do multiple if everyone wants different pensions being paid into, then it becomes a lot of hassle and whenever i've asked in the past it's been a no.
I tend to now just let it build up to a certain point and then transfer it over, then let it build up again.
I tend to now just let it build up to a certain point and then transfer it over, then let it build up again.
I suspect if you've transferred your workplace pension in its entirety Scot Wids may assume the pension is to close. Your contributions may well get rejected.
Did you tell your work you were going to make the transfer?
Soldato
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That's what I did - transferred a decent amount. But I didn't realise I would end up with no policy at SW.
No, I didn't think I would need to. Perhaps I do need to...presumably they would find out fairly quickly if the contributions were rejected?
Why would you transfer a "live" workplace pension?
That's just silly. Effectively now you'll most probably have zero contributions going anywhere.
The point of a workplace pension is that the employer makes a single large contribution to one provider and that contribution is divided up into everyone's pot based on the correct amount. You employer isn't going to start paying into Vanguard for you... imagine everyone in your work decided to go to different providers - the workload/payment schedule would be ridiculous.
You need to sort this out asap. Transferring a live workplace pension is just daft. If you could have left something behind at least that would have kept the plan going but in some cases providers won't accept partial transfers.
There is more than enough funds and choices with SW to use them - No need to transfer out anything from a live workplace pension.
Soldato
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Yeah definitely made a mistake. Out of ignorance to be honest!
Need to sort it out quickly as it could end up being a total mess. Speak to your employer and also SW/Vanguard asap.
Sorry if I sounded a little harsh....
Out of interest - what was your reasons for transferring in the first place?
I relate to the premise. Workplace pension with good employer contributions but lacklustre fund choices so would rather invest in a SIPP. My compromise was to transfer the balance of my workplace pension to my SIPP on a quarterly basis but keep my workplace pension open to continue receiving employer contributions. This worked well Aviva->Fidelity. In hindsight should have gone with Vanguard directly rather than Fidelity as fees are lower.
I sincerely hope that it works out for you, I’d have liked to follow suit, but when I was 50-60 I was earning bundles, and I’d have been a mug to retire while it kept coming through the door all the time.
Being a dyed in the wool hedonist, I’d been flying around the world spunking money like a drunken sailor, spurred on by my old man’s maxim, “You’re only here seventy odd years Jean-François, it ain’t a rehearsal.”
I’d loved to have kept it up, but as I turned seventy I could feel my body running out of steam, so I quit work and sat on the sofa reading books and nursing the occasional vodka.
Prior to Covid I visited family in France a lot, when this latest burst eases off I intend to get over there again and again, as often as I can.
I made more money from property than a final salary pension I started in the mid 90's, or a high paying job in a company I part owned and sold. I wasn't looking to profit from property, but I ended up with 5 at one stage, and no mortgages, though no intention to BTL or anything else. Just circumstance. Selling 3 has enabled me to make life choices. (I did keep them for upwards of 20 years though! and they were a complete pain to manage in the last few years).
Soldato
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Hah that's alright. I will speak to SW today. I think my company might struggle to fix it at the moment.
My wife's old workplace pension is in Vanguard with the VUSA (I think that's the S&P in GBP if I remember right) and it has performed really well. Also, SW's website is something from the 90s in how it looks, but also in how it functions. I have 3 choices of funds - low risk, medium risk, and high risk, that's it.
Actually, the fund wasn't terrible. As I said above, I prefer how Vanguard works though. I had only intended to transfer the balance if I'm honest, so I'm a bit peeved about that.
If SW have closed it wouldn't it just be a case of restarting the workplace pension from scratch? As in you're just 'opting in' again. So you would have a workplace pension, plus the Vanguard SIPP.
If that's the case then you'd probably just lose a couple of months conibutions whilst it's set up.
If that's the case then you'd probably just lose a couple of months conibutions whilst it's set up.
The dream is to retire away in the middle of nowhere and build a couple of holiday lets. I'm saving a big chunk each year and with hefty share incentives and with my investments it should be possible.