Pensions minister Guy Opperman has announced plans for multiple pension dashboards to be set up as a partnership between the government and the pensions industry. Earlier this year there were fears that the dashboard project would not go ahead as Works & Pensions Secretary Esther McVey appeared to rule out any government involvement.
As Britain’s house prices continue to soar it has emerged that some lenders are offering mortgages for up to six times buyers’ salaries – a level branded ‘irresponsible’ and ‘alarming’ just before the housing crash of 2008. Top financial journalist Louise Eccles said: “First-time buyers are saddling themselves with record levels of debt as banks …
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British pensioners who opted out of defined benefit pension schemes in the Nineties are set to receive millions of pounds in back payments following a High Court ruling. Experts believe the change could cost the pensions industry as much as £15 billion after three female members of the Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) pension scheme won …
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The government’s Help To Buy scheme has been extended for two more years by Chancellor Philip Hammond in his Budget speech. The equity loan scheme was due to end in 2021, but Mr Hammond announced it will be extended to March 2023, but only for first-time buyers on new build properties. Interest free Launched in …
The continuing rapid growth of the UK equity release market has been demonstrated by a record £1 billion being released for homeowners in the last the last quarter. The Equity Release Council lending figures just released show that between July and September equity was being released at the equivalent of £11 million a day. Record …
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The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has banned the alleged mastermind of a £13.7 million scam along with his three associates from ever becoming a pension scheme trustee ever again. David Austin has also been disqualified from being a company director for 12 years by the Insolvency Service. Life savings Austin and accomplices Susan Dalton, Alan Barratt …
Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has been forced to repay £38 million for excess tax levied on pension withdrawals in just three months. Data released by HMRC shows that there have been 18,353 successful applications for overpaid tax between July 1st and September 20th and the average refund was £2,000. Total reclaimed This is …
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Could you be losing out on £13,000 in lost pension contributions – part of the £20 billion sitting unclaimed by savers across the country? The Association of British Insurers (ABI) estimates that around 1.6 million pension pots remain unclaimed, but the number could be even higher because their researchers didn’t look into public service pensions …
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Soaring house prices over the last 20 years mean young people with a deposit, desperate to buy their first home, can’t afford to buy even the cheapest homes in their area. A report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has found that house prices have risen by an average of 173% in the last …
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The outcome of two court cases involving the mis-selling of Self Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) are expected to have wide implications for the pensions industry later this month. The potential size of SIPP mis-selling in the UK has been the subject of speculation at the highest level for some time with MP Frank Field calling …