Questions About Pensions?

We speak to a variety of people across the UK about their pension needs and then advise them on their options. You may be considering starting your first pension, consolidating your pensions, finding where you had a pension or need advice on accessing your pension. We can help you with all of these requests. You may also have a question about your pension paperwork that you would like to discuss and a qualified adviser can help you with this too.

Our advice starts over the telephone and where applicable we can meet with you for face to face support too.

At Free Pension Advice we know that pensions can be confusing and time consuming, which is why we offer advice without charging a fee. You can call and speak to a qualified pension adviser without having to pay a bill at the end of the call.

We can help you source pensions, understand their value and talk to you about building a retirement plan that will meet your expectations. Our expert pension advisers do this for free. If you require any pension transfers, consolidation or for an adviser to act on your behalf, we may need to charge for our time. Any costs would be explained upfront and you won’t be left with an unexpected bill to pay.

Defined benefit/ Guaranteed Minimum Payment (GMP) or final salary pensions operate slightly differently. We can help you understand these pensions and answer any questions you may have, however if you’re interested in transferring these funds we may need to set a fee in advance under new regulations.

If there are ever any fees to pay, past the advice stage, we always explain these costs in advance and only proceed with your approval.

Once we’ve completed a free initial review you are under no obligation to proceed with our advice.

All pension advisers at Free Pension Advice are qualified, regulated and experienced financial planners. Any adviser you speak to about your pension should be regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Initial conversations are held by our para-planning and customer service advisers and they won’t provide you with advice, instead they will gather necessary information to help the financial adviser.

Our advisers at our primary company, who will provide advice, are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Whether you choose to contact us or somebody else for your pension advice, you should ensure your adviser is listed on the FCA register. You can see our list of advisers here.

The Free Pension Advice website does not provide financial advice and as such no financial decisions should be made based on information on this website. Only a qualified financial planner is authorised to advise you on your financial investments and pensions.

We treat every client based on their needs. Whilst our advisers like to meet face to face that’s not always necessary or possible. For instance, if you have a simple question about your pension then we’ll often be able to give you that advice within 20 minutes over the phone. In other circumstances a face to face meeting may be more beneficial.

Typically we start by understanding your requirements before a qualified adviser can then assist you, either over the telephone or face to face.

You can visit our offices or meet one of our regional advisers to discuss your pension requirements. Please contact us to arrange an appointment and we will be delighted to help.

We have a number of pension advisers and financial planners so we’ll select one that best meets your needs. Your pension adviser will support you every step of your journey.

Qualified pension advisers work in partnership with a team of talented administrators and paraplanners so you may speak to different people but you will have direct contact to your pension adviser when you need them.

Every week we hear from people with a final salary/ GMP / Defined Benefit pension. It’s not always the best advice to transfer this pension and consideration must be given to each person’s circumstances. We tailor all of our advice to your situation, so if you have a pension which you would like to transfer we can assess whether this is in your best interests.

We will explain all the positives and negatives so you’re empowered to make an informed decision.

We can help to guide you through the process of finding any pensions you may have paid into. After multiple jobs you may have started different pensions and we would look to help you source these pensions so you can find out the value of the pension. You can then decide whether you need advice on these pensions which we can assist you with.

On the 6th April 2015, pension freedoms meant it was possible to access 25% of your pension without paying tax if you are 55 years old (or older).

You can access your pension from 55, but it’s recommended you seek advice to discuss retirement planning and tax implications.

If you have a final salary, GMP or defined benefit pension you may need to transfer your pension in order to receive the tax free allowance. There are various other considerations that should be given with these pensions and you should speak to a qualified adviser.