18th September 2007
Des Browne MP
Highlights Forgotten Pensions
Local Labour MP, Des Browne wishes to draw attention to findings published by the UK government website Directgov which show that a surprising number of people aren’t keeping track of pensions savings which could make a substantial difference to their retirement income.
The national survey found that one of the main reasons for losing track of pensions is the number of times people change jobs, with one in five UK adults changing jobs five times or more by the time they are 34 years old. Over half of UK adults have no idea how much money they’ve built up in pension schemes – and one in six people have no details of where their money is saved. It also found that one in three in the UK aged over 18 have two or more pensions illustrating that this problem is likely to get worse.
Des Browne points out that to assist members of the public to track their lost pension, the government has launched a free pension tracing service at Directgov (www.direct.gov.uk), the website which brings public services together all in one place. With access to a database of over 200,000 occupational and personal pension schemes. This free service can provide individuals with contact details for their lost pension schemes. For those without access to the internet, you can also order a pensions tracing form through Directgov digital television or call the Pension Tracing Service on 0845 6002 537.
Des said:
Regardless of how little you may think you are entitled to the reality is that you could be potentially losing out on pension entitlements worth thousands of pounds. I would encourage any of my constituents who have lost track of their pension savings to take advantage of this free service to enable them to better plan for their retirement.
