A financial expert has outlined three essential pension queries individuals should ponder, as recent studies indicate a growing trend of people turning to social media for personal finance information.
Research conducted by AYTM on behalf of TikTok indicates that one out of every three UK users now looks to the platform for financial insights, with 41% encountering banking-related content on their feeds.
Scottish Widows has harnessed TikTok to engage Gen Z on pension planning early, with over 191,000 posts under #retirementplanning. Since joining TikTok in September 2024, Scottish Widows has amassed more than 323 million video views.
HSBC reports over 10 million views on their personal finance content, while Nationwide is leveraging TikTok to boost financial confidence among users.
Pensions expert Robert Cochran from Scottish Widows shared valuable tips with Mirror for individuals grappling with starting their pension journey or aiming to optimize their retirement funds.
It is common for individuals to accumulate multiple pension pots over their careers, potentially leading to lost track of savings. Contacting pension providers to ascertain saved amounts is crucial, with a free pension tracing service available on GOV.UK to aid in locating retirement funds.
Downloading pension provider apps for private or workplace schemes, along with checking state pension forecasts, is recommended by Robert to gain comprehensive financial insights.
Determining the retirement lifestyle one is set to achieve is essential. The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association categorizes three retirement standards—minimum, moderate, and comfortable—for planning purposes.
If individuals find they are falling short of their desired retirement level, increasing contributions to workplace pensions is advised. Through pension auto-enrolment, employers must contribute a minimum of 3% while employees contribute 5%.
Considering consolidation of multiple pension pots is the next step after tracking down all pensions. Evaluating current fees, comparing them with other options, and assessing potential exit costs are vital aspects to contemplate before making a decision.
Reviewing whether to consolidate pensions into a single plan for better management or maintaining multiple plans to reduce costs and enhance monitoring efficiency is a strategic consideration, as suggested by Robert.