'Lots of talk but no action to tackle pensions crisis'

Aidan McLoughlin, Group Managing Director of Independent Trustee Company, last week advised that Ireland needs a pensions minister to grapple with the crisis facing the sector.  This issue is further addressed in an article on the Independent.ie website on Thursday August 15th.  Click here to read the full article.

A third of workers plan to rely solely on a state pension

In a recent survey conducted by Amarach Research, it was found that a third of workers plan to rely solely on a state pension, the Irish Independent reported today.

The state pension currently stands at just under €12,000 per annum which is about one third of the average wage (€35,849, CSO 2011). These figures mean that many people will find it almost impossible to keep up their current standard of living if they rely solely on the state. In a recent report by the IAPF it was found that there was a large gap between what people expect from the state pension and what they will receive in reality. This gap is likely to get wider.

The survey, conducted with 1,000 adults shows that only 4 out of 10 people plan to use a combination of the state pension and private retirement income. It was also found that three-quarters of people do not know how much they are paying in annual pension charges and just one in 10 shop around for pension products (Independent.ie).

The importance of private pension provision is unquestionable, relying solely on the state pension will not ensure long term financial security for most.

You can read the full article here.


Melanie Farrell
Independent Trustee Company

A diamond is forever, but what about your pension?

Any employers who are currently acting as trustee on their group pension scheme and are querying the value of appointing an independent trustee may be interested in reading the article by Tim Healy in the Independent - Ex- De Beers pension fund members are owed €50m, court hears.

This case outlines very clearly the inherent conflict of the employer trustee, particularly in a wind up situation. One of the main duties of a trustee is to act in the members best interest. It can be very difficult for a member trustee, who is employed by the company, or a company trustee who has an allegiance to the employer to separate out these roles and only act with only the members interest in mind. As can be seen in this case to do otherwise can leave the trustees open to legal action by the members. The members claim in this case is thought to be valued at €40-50 million. By appointing an independent trustee you can avoid this potential conflict.

Niamh Quirke

Technical Associate

Independent Trustee Limited