How secure do I want my pension to be?

Or perhaps it might be more correct to ask how secure do I want my pension vehicle to be? Pension holders, other than those in defined benefit schemes, are already carrying an investment risk, a risk that the performance of their pension may be less than they had projected.

But what about the security of the pension structure itself? What if I have my pension with an insurance company where my pension assets are held on that company’s balance sheet and that company gets into difficulty?

Of late we have been contacted by a number of advisors in relation to pooled funds and querying the ability of the person running a fund to invest in assets that were not in the original investment proposal for that fund. We have to say that this is very rare however it is getting aired in the media at the current moment in time because of controversy elsewhere.

Taking all the feedback we are getting it is clear that advisors see the security of pensions as a significant matter. Perhaps they are looking at the UK where the current thinking is that an advisor who does not consider the security of the pension vehicle when recommending a pension to his client can be deemed to be negligent.

So, what can ITC do about security of pensions? Well, for a start we can try to get the views of the industry on a more formal basis. In that regard we have already convened a discussion where we have invited people with a significant interest in this area to express their views.

We would also like the view of the industry in general.  We would really appreciate feedback on what you as an advisor would like to see in terms of pension security. For example:

• What way would you like to see pensions structured?
• Are there any specific measures that you think would make pensions more secure and help to promote confidence in the industry?

For our part we will collate the responses and report back to you.

We will utilise that feedback to ensure that we have the most secure pension structures possible.

So please, get emailing and let us know - we value your opinion!

 Sean McLoughlin