Pensions dashboards move a step closer to becoming a reality as the FCA sets out when firms will need to provide member data to the Money and Pensions Service.
Most pension firms will need to have data ready for pensions dashboards from 31 August 2023.
However, those pension providers with fewer than 5,000 pension pots in ‘accumulation’ can apply to have until 31 October 2024 to comply with the regulations.
Tom Selby, head of retirement policy at AJ Bell, comments: “Confirmation of when all pension firms will need to provide data for pensions dashboards brings the project another step closer to becoming a reality. Once fully operational, dashboards will allow millions of savers to see the value of all their pension pots, plus their state pension entitlement, in one place, online.
“The need for dashboards was laid bare by research published last week which suggested a staggering £26.6 billion of pension cash is ‘lost’ – meaning the owner and administrator have become disconnected*.
“This problem has been exacerbated by a combination of automatic enrolment, frequent job switches and more people moving home, particularly during the pandemic. AJ Bell research on ‘job hoppers’ shows workers aged 18-34 have already had over five employers each on average – despite being less than halfway through their careers**.
“Each time someone changes job, they will likely get a new pension and risk losing track of their pot, or pots, from previous employers. Dashboards should help address this growing problem, although it will still be up to individuals to take the bull by the horns and combine their pensions with a single provider.”
How to switch to a new provider
“The good news is that, in most cases, switching to a new provider should be fairly straightforward.
“You can open a SIPP online in as little as 10 minutes and, once you’ve done that, all you’ll need to do is enter the details of the scheme or schemes you want to transfer. The provider you are moving your money to should then do all the legwork.”
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