GrannyGranny Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Some of us actually take responsibility for how we are going to fund out retirement and will noy be just relying on the state. I've no intention on living on just the £107 per week or whatever the state pension will be. Personally I think its a good idea. If you don't want to contribute then opt out. You don't need to make a big song and dance about it! You have plenty of time and oppurtunity do do it. The Goverment aren't forcing you to do it, there's no gun to your head. IMO you will be foolish NOT to do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chem1st Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 I currently contribute to my pension so this is not applicable to me. If your wages are PAYE you will be automatically enrolled at some point in the future. Enrollment begins today for the largest employers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chem1st Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 That's true but if you have no other income than a state pension aren't there other benefits you can get? Genuine question. I suppose you need to work out whether you're better off paying into a private pension or spending your cash and relying on the state to support you when you retire.. (think about care home fees etc etc..) Yes, pension credit, which passports you to many other benefits. Many people paying into this will still be relying on pension credit, they will be no better off come retirement. And they will be poorer now to boot. People could even end up worse off in retirement, by going over the pension credit threshold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Expat owl Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 All this talk of pension credits and opting out, etc What are people going to do when the payment of a State Pension, and all associated credits, etc, becomes unaffordable and is no longer paid at the level that it is today (probably within the next 20 years). Serious question !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms Macbeth Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Some of us actually take responsibility for how we are going to fund out retirement and will noy be just relying on the state. I've no intention on living on just the £107 per week or whatever the state pension will be. Personally I think its a good idea. If you don't want to contribute then opt out. You don't need to make a big song and dance about it! You have plenty of time and oppurtunity do do it. The Goverment aren't forcing you to do it, there's no gun to your head. IMO you will be foolish NOT to do it. Some of us tried to do that and have ended up not much better off for our efforts. At the moment, it is debatable if its worth saving for a pension that takes you just a little bit over the means tested levels of pension credit. Pension credit has been the greatest disincentive to lower paid workers saving for their retirement. As there are no checks on how much someone earned and potentially could have saved, people could spend every penny before retirement, and be eligible for pension credit. That entitlement is a passport to council tax benefit; housing benefit; cold weather payments; free dental treatment etc. Those of us who took responsibility but couldn't build up a sizeable pension have to pay for everything ourselves and the net result is often just a few pounds in our pocket. Seems just a tad unfair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 I'm on the fence to be honest. The money men appear divided too. The second to last paragraph concerns me the most. http://www.moneywise.co.uk/pensions/managing-your-pension/will-new-workplace-pensions-make-difference Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister M Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 I agree with what you've said, and I guess why I asked the original question is it worth saving for a pension....as I only work part time and the money that I forgo each month I can ill afford. Many people chose to invest in property an use that as their nest egg, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chem1st Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 I'm on the fence to be honest. The money men appear divided too. The second to last paragraph concerns me the most. http://www.moneywise.co.uk/pensions/managing-your-pension/will-new-workplace-pensions-make-difference They are automatically enrolling people without asking them, they have just a month to opt out or forefeit the money till some far off point in the future, many are unaware, and won't notice till they see the deduction in their pay packets. People will be automatically enrolled again ever 3 years (you cannot express a desire to opt out permanently!) And have to opt out again and again and again (or avoid some serious financial loss - many will be worse off for paying into this scheme). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sibon Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 They are automatically enrolling people without asking them, they have just a month to opt out or forefeit the money till some far off point in the future, many are unaware, and won't notice till they see the deduction in their pay packets. People will be automatically enrolled again ever 3 years (you cannot express a desire to opt out permanently!) And have to opt out again and again and again (or avoid some serious financial loss - many will be worse off for paying into this scheme). But many more people are not allowed to opt out of supporting those who opt out of providing for themselves. Why shouldn't those in work save for their own retirement? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chem1st Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 Contrast that to the housing register. Some people on that still expect to be offered when it is their time and are unaware of the choice based letting system. Some of them have even been taken off the register! Every year they ask you to "re-sign", many people in need of housing are vulnerably housed and precariously housed. A homeless person, sofa surfer, or person forced to move from AST to AST, has no fixed address in the grand scheme of things, no security of tenure whatsoever wrt the annual resign onto the register malarky. So the year comes and their housing registration lapses! They fall to the bottom of the queue. Pushed away from the from of housing they NEED! Due to some down right dirty tactic being used to reduce the waiting list! Make no mistake these are policies of behavioural control that affect the most vulnerable in our society. "We have always thought: if someone really wants to opt-out because of their own personal circumstances, who are we to say that is not the right thing to do?" Blakstad said the website process, seen by PP, is 99% of what members will see in October. Workers who decide to opt-out and click the appropriate button on the website are first met by a message that says: "Not sure you can afford it? You can try it and take a break later." If they click to continue through the opt-out process, they are met by another screen that asks: "Are you happy to lose out on money from your employers?" The screen then allows members to enter their salary and see how much they stand to lose in employer contributions and tax relief. Then they are met by two more screens confirming they are opting-out before the process is complete. NEST will then inform the worker's employer and write a letter to the individual confirming the opt-out is complete. On the employer side, employers "engage with the process but do not run it" - which NEST argues relieves the administrative burden around opt-outs. The process has been structured in this manner based on consultations with behavioural economists. The economists told NEST the best way prevent bad decisions by members is to highlight that they can opt-out later and stop paying in at any point, as well as the amount they stand to lose in employer contributions and tax relief. Blakstad added: "What we are looking to do is not to minimise opt-outs, but to minimise inappropriate opt-outs." Read more: http://www.professionalpensions.com/professional-pensions/news/2163908/nest-finalises-opt-process#ixzz285kivv00 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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