Pensions

An individual stakeholder pension is a similar to a personal pension but have to meet certain standards set by the Government.  They include features such as limited charges, low minimum contributions and penalty-free transfers.  The fund range offered may be restricted in comparison to other types of pension.  You can take out a Stakeholder pension from a bank, life assurance company, building society, investment company and some retailers so that you don't have to rely on the state pension alone.  At N&P, we provide a stakeholder pension in association with Legal & General.

When you contribute to a Stakeholder pension the Government automatically adds 20% basic tax relief, which reduces the amount you actually pay. For example, if you pay £80 into your pension the Government adds £20 to make a total investment of £100. If you pay tax at the higher or additional rate, you can claim the difference through your annual tax return.

With a stakeholder pension, you pay money into your pension to build your pension fund.  Fund managers pool your money with that of other investors and invest on your behalf. This gives you cost-effective access to a wide range of investment funds and financial expertise that might normally be expensive to obtain on your own. The value of your pension fund will go up and down, and it may be worth less than the amount paid in.

When you retire, you can normally take a tax-free lump sum from the fund and use the rest to secure an income for your retirement. Please be aware tax rules may change in the future.

A stakeholder pension might be right for you if you're self-employed or you don't pay into a company pension scheme. You can also use your stakeholder pension to top up the money you would get from your company pension.

A Legal & General financial consultant can help you choose the fund you would like to invest in and pay into throughout your working life to build up a pension fund for your retirement.  You can invest from as little as £20 a month, (although the more you put into your pension, the better chance it has of meeting your retirement needs) and you can stop, increase or decrease your regular contributions at any time. 

Personal pensions are similar to stakeholder pensions, but tend to offer a wider range of investment funds to choose from and may have higher charges and higher minimum monthly contribution levels than Stakeholder pensions. If you don't pay into a company pension, or want to top-up your pension savings, an individual personal pension could be a good option for you.

When you contribute to a Personal Pension, the Government automatically adds 20% basic tax relief, which reduces the amount you actually pay. For example, if you pay £80 into your pension the Government adds £20 to make a total investment of £100. If you pay tax at the higher or additional rate, you can claim the difference through your annual tax return.

You and your employer can make contributions to a personal pension even if you’re a member of other pension schemes.

As with a stakeholder pension, fund managers pool your money with that of other investors and invest on your behalf. This gives you cost-effective access to a wide range of investment funds and financial expertise that might normally be expensive to obtain on your own. The value of your pension will go up and down, and then it may be worth less than the amount paid in.

When you retire, you can take a tax-free lump sum from the fund and use the rest to secure an income for your retirement. Tax rules may change in the future.