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Archive for the ‘Savings’ Category

Retirement Planning is Number One Advice Driver

Monday, June 21st, 2010

A recent online survey has revealed that retirement planning has once again been named as the number one advice driver for individuals searching for an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA).

The questionnaire was conducted amongst users of professional advice website, unbiased.co.uk. Of those visitors who were using the ‘find an IFA’ service, 35% were looking for retirement planning advice more than any other service when looking online.

Closely behind retirement planning, the results showed that the second most popular advice driver was investment planning and savings advice from which a quarter (25%) of users was looking for an IFA specialising in this area.

Financial planning can often be a complex area which is why the need for independent financial advice continues to be high as more and more consumers consider investments and long term financial planning for retirement.

With the coalition government ringing the changes across UK policy and talk of an emergency budget being declared, it is likely that consumers will be scrutinising their finances to help understand if and how the government’s changes to pensions and capital gains tax could affect them.

Retirement planning can be a daunting exploration for most individuals. Seeking advice from an independent financial adviser can help you explore fully, all possibilities available to you and your circumstances.

If you would like advice on retirement planning or investment planning in general, please feel free to call one of our expert advisers on 0114 272 3994

Tags: Financial Planning, Investment Planning, Retirement Planning, Savings
Posted in Investment Planning, Retirement Planning, Savings | 1 Comment »

Bad Financial Planning Could Lead to Retirement Poverty

Monday, June 21st, 2010

Concerns have been raised recently after a study by financial experts revealed that thousands of workers in the UK are ‘walking blindly’ into retirement poverty because of their failure to plan their future finances properly and save into a pension.

The survey questioned 7,500 workers across 10 European countries from which it was discovered that the UK had some of the highest levels of pension’s indifference in Europe.

The questionnaire revealed that one in five Britons are not sufficiently planning for their retirement because they could not afford to in the current state of economic recovery, while 12% stated that they hadn’t actually got around to starting a pension.

Of the UK workers questioned as part of the survey, 12% declared an open interest in pensions, whereas nearly half (47%) of participants said that their employer currently provides them with one, a low figure when compared with the fact that it is now a legal requirement for all workers to have access to a pension scheme.

Analysing the results, 5% of participants completely dismissed the idea of retirement planning by stating that they were simply going to live off the state pension when they were older and so hadn’t looked into any other form of investment planning.

In contrast to those individuals who were not looking to participate in a pension scheme, 4% of British workers said that they put a large amount of their income into a pension pot because of the tax breaks available from doing so.

With the newly elected coalition government looking at ways to reduce pension obligations, it is imperative that individuals begin to take more responsibility for their retirement finances or face the very real prospect of ‘walking blindly’ into retirement poverty.

For further information regarding retirement planning and financial planning in general, please contact one of our expert advisers on 0114 272 3994.

Tags: Investment Planning, Pensions, Retirement Planning
Posted in Investment Planning, Pensions, Retirement Planning, Savings | 1 Comment »

Expat Britons Lose Battle for Pension Rights

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

More than half a million expatriate Britons were left reeling with a sense of injustice this week after their long and arduous claim against the British Government for equal pension rights was dismissed by the European Court of Human Rights.

The legal action brought by the group of British expats was in relation to the current ‘frozen pensions’ policy affecting mostly retired Britons living in Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations. Even though they previously contributed to Britain’s mandatory National Insurance Scheme during their working lives, their current pensions during retirement, are not indexed annually against inflation.

The appeal bench at the ECHR found that Britain’s long standing ‘frozen pensions’ policy was therefore not discriminatory.

The legal ruling brings to a close an epic legal fight mounted by various British pensioner organisations based in Australia, Canada and South Africa, who continually argued their case for parity through several appeal courts. Should their legal action been successful, they could have expected to receive an extra £200 million in pension payments this year.

The decision by the ECHR has not been looked upon favourably by Commonwealth governments who believe that the final judgement could be discriminatory as it continues to place an increasing burden on their respective nation’s taxpayers.

Tags: pension schemes, Retirement Planning
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At Long Last…. An Improvement in Pension Fund Finances

Monday, February 1st, 2010

It has come as a welcome relief this week for both potential and current investors of pension schemes, that after countless months of negativity, the financial position of final salary pension schemes in the UK has improved sharply over the past two months according to reports by the Pension Protection Fund (PPF).

Reasons for the Increase?

Such news has come at a time when it has recently been announced that the UK has emerged from the recession, with economic growth being recorded at 0.1% over the last 3 months of 2009. The PPF acknowledged this as a contributing factor in the fortuitous rise of pension schemes positions, but also stated that improvements could also be down to higher share prices and improved returns on government bonds (gilts).

With a direct impact on personal pension plans, the financial recovery has yielded higher returns on UK government bonds, which in effect has meant that the cost of paying for pensions in the future has dropped by nearly 6%.

Volatile Market

Over the past two years especially, pension planning and investment has been a particularly cautious topic for many people as pension fund finances have been extremely volatile.

Pension funds are susceptible not only to the fluctuation of assets traded on the financial markets, they also respond to assumptions used to estimate the cost of supplying future pension plans. The emergence of a huge deficit within the economy, that according to experts cannot be effectively controlled, has led many employers to close the doors on all final salary pension schemes, which has also had direct repercussions for financial investment and pension planning.

With the potential volatility ringing in many people’s ears, and recent announcements calling for over 65’s to carry on working, the news of strong equitable returns and rising gilt yields from investment schemes has been more than a welcomed sigh of relief for pension members.

Tags: Investment Planning, pension schemes, Retirement Planning, Savings
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More Flexibility for Retirement Savings?

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

At Campbell Harrison we are always keen to keep an eye open for all things financial. It was intriguing therefore to see this week the discussion topics from the Tax Incentivised Savings Association (TISA) pre budget report.

The report was conducted amid calls for the government to draw up a national savings strategy and review income replacement policies.

Desired Outcomes

Upon submitting the report, TISA reiterated their on-going support for the notion of a workplace ISA which would help contribute to a more flexible savings approach to help finance retirement.

The original idea of a workplace ISA was proposed by TISA back in 2008 as a method of complementing the existing pension system. Senior officials believe that the newly proposed system of retirement savings will provide a less restrictive saving option, encourage more people to pursue retirement schemes and raise awareness of taking more responsibility for your retirement years.

The desired Working ISA has been greeted with a mixed response, dividing opinions across a number of levels. Favourably for TISA, reports have suggested that the proposal has been growing in support amongst some labour and conservative officials.

What the Saving Scheme would involve

Guidelines for the new retirement plan would involve the ISA commencing at age 18 and would cease with a defined age of 65 for example, or upon reaching the state retirement stage at the time.

When the policy holder has reached the previously defined age, the funds would convert into a standard ISA under the proposed guidelines, which would then allow the individual to select an ‘income in retirement’ option that would most suit them and their future lifestyle.

On top of the working ISA, the pre budget report conducted by TISA is also advocating that the government establish a retirement savings review to consider the effectiveness of current saving and investment schemes as well as pension policy.

Interesting times ahead for the savings and investment market it would seem as the debate for a working ISA and savings strategy continues.

Tags: Investment Planning Sheffield, Retirement Planning, Savings
Posted in ISA's, Investment Planning, Pensions, Retirement Planning, Savings | 2 Comments »

Financial Planning and Investment

Friday, November 27th, 2009

The ramifications of the past couple of years with regards to economic stability should have highlighted to financial observers that there is no such thing as an efficient market.

Markets are sometimes prone to ‘overshooting’, and when they do the consequences of any fall out affect us all. For example, take into account the spectacular collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 and financial entanglement that followed.

As a result of the economic collapse, people’s attitudes to financial planning have changed and now seem slightly more reluctant to invest money for fear of losing their life savings should a crash happen again. If they follow sound investment advice however, their fears can be put aside and replaced by a healthy financial plan and investment security to be optimistic about. Here’s how…..

Managing Risk

A major shortcoming that can cause investors to stumble and not reap the potential rewards is narrow mindedness. The world’s biggest and most successful investors have a long term plan and don’t panic when the short term outlook isn’t favourable.

Instead they maintain sight of their long term goals and continue to look at the big picture.

Campbell Harrison has a dedicated and talented team of advisors who help people maintain focus on the medium and long term and not panic about, what can be major short term fluctuations.

Consider your financial planning situation and give us a call to find out which investments are right for your long term aims

Tags: Financial Planning, Investment Planning Sheffield
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