tracking your pension
If you are in a final salary scheme, you
should receive annual benefit statements from the scheme
administrator/trustees. If you have left behind benefits in a
former employer’s final salary scheme, you should contact the
administrators/trustees for an estimate of your expected pension at
retirement.
If you are in a money purchase (also known as
defined contribution plan), which includes group personal pensions
(GPP), group stakeholders, or individual arrangements of these
plans, you can get a fund value at any time.
If you are a current member of a GPP, many
employers provide online facilities whereby you can get an
up-to-date valuation of your pension fund at any time. If not, you
simply multiply the number of units you hold in each fund and
multiply by the prevailing unit price.
If your pension fund is more complex, you can
ask your pension provider to send you a statement at any time, and
you should receive a statement each year anyway.
The unit prices of most insurance companies’
unit linked pension funds are published on their websites and in
the FT.
If you are invested in with profits funds, you
will need to contact your insurer for an up-to-date valuation
because the value of the fund will be based on a complex system of
bonuses paid each year. Some insurers also pay terminal bonuses but
these are not mandatory and are not announced until you reach
retirement.
Be sure to inform former employer sponsored pension
schemes and insurance companies of any change of
address.