Why managing your pensions can feel overwhelming, and what you can do about it

It can be incredibly easy for your pension to become one of those things you promise yourself you’ll deal with “one day”.

You might start a new job, forget to update an address with an old provider, or move house, and then suddenly realise you have several pension pots scattered around from various stages of your working life.

Combine this with statements from providers filled with terms such as “annual allowance” and “drawdown”, and the subject can quickly feel overwhelming.

Aviva suggests this is more common than you might think.

69% of respondents had between one and five pension pots, but 20% didn’t know exactly how many they had.

Even among those who knew where their pensions were, 35% didn’t understand how to access them.

The good news is that getting your pension plan under control doesn’t necessarily need to be difficult. Often, the best first step is simply understanding what you have and where there might be gaps.

So, continue reading to find out why managing your pensions can feel overwhelming, and how a few practical steps – particularly with the help of Hansford Bell – could help you feel more confident about your financial future.

Managing your pensions can become complicated when life is busy

You likely haven’t intentionally lost track of your pension wealth, as this tends to happen gradually.

For instance, you may have moved jobs, been enrolled in a new workplace scheme, received paperwork, and put it away somewhere safe.

Then, a few years might pass, and the details become harder to remember. Over time, you may end up with several pots, all with different:

• Providers
• Investment funds
• Charges 
• Rules

Of course, leaving your pensions alone means that, on paper, they might still be doing what they’re supposed to do.

Yet, when everything is spread out, it can be difficult to understand the full picture. You might not know:

• How much you’ve saved overall
• Whether you’re contributing enough to achieve your dream lifestyle
• How your pension wealth is invested
• The charges you’re paying
• Whether any older pensions include useful guarantees
• The kind of income they might provide later in life. 

This can quickly turn pensions into something you avoid, rather than something you feel confident dealing with. 

Eventually, this avoidance can lead to regret, especially if you later realise you could have made seemingly insignificant changes sooner to improve your retirement.

Read more: 5 of the biggest retirement regrets, and how you can avoid making the same mistakes

It’s practical to nail down the basics before tackling your pensions

If your pensions do feel overwhelming, it can help to avoid beginning with the more complicated questions.

Indeed, you don’t need to decide exactly when you’ll retire or how you’ll draw an income. Instead, you may want to start with the basics.

If you believe you have an old workplace pension but don’t know how to locate it, the government’s Pension Tracing Service can help you find contact details for the scheme. 

Once you have this information in one place, you can start to build a clearer view of your situation. This alone can be surprisingly reassuring.

You may discover that you’re actually in a better position than you imagined, or you could identify gaps that need attention early.

Either way, knowing exactly where you stand is far better than simply guessing.

Once you have a clearer idea of what you have, a helpful next step is to consider what your pensions are meant to fund.

After all, planning for retirement isn’t really about your pensions, but rather the life you want once you leave the workforce.

You might want to travel more, spend time with loved ones, or take up new hobbies. Or, you may want the flexibility to retire gradually rather than stopping all at once.

This matters because your dream retirement will shape the income you need. For instance, your spending might be higher in the early years if you plan to travel or renovate your home.

Later on, your priorities may change, and care costs or health-related expenses might become more relevant. 

This is where cashflow planning can be helpful. 

At Hansford Bell, we use sophisticated cashflow models to show how your finances might evolve over time. This can help you see whether your pensions are likely to support the lifestyle you want and what changes could make a difference.

Be careful before you make your pensions “tidier”

When you have several pension pots, it can be tempting to bring them all together as soon as possible.

In some cases, this can be sensible, as having one main fund might reduce paperwork and make your savings easier to manage.

However, consolidation isn’t always the right choice for everyone. Some older pensions include valuable benefits, such as:

• Guaranteed annuity rates
• Protected tax-free cash
• Lower charges.

If you move the money without checking first, you could lose benefits that are difficult to replace.

We can help turn overwhelming feelings about your pensions into confidence

Managing your pensions can quickly feel overwhelming when you’re trying to piece everything together on your own. 

This is where working with us could make everything feel far more straightforward.

At Hansford Bell, we can help you understand what you already have and explain your options in plain English, showing how your pensions fit into your wider financial plan. 

We can also help you weigh the benefits and drawbacks of consolidation in your unique circumstances, potentially making things simpler without sacrificing valuable benefits.

And, because retirement planning isn’t a one-off conversation, it’s vital to have a planner who can support you over the long term. 

We have a younger, but still highly experienced, board, meaning we’re well placed to build a lasting relationship with you that will continue throughout retirement. 

This can help provide continuity and stability, rather than leaving you feeling as though you will need to start again with someone new later down the line.

Read more: How financial planning can significantly boost your wellbeing in retirement

Having someone you trust to guide you through retirement planning can quickly dispel overwhelming feelings and help you secure some much-needed confidence.

So, to find out how we could help you plan for the next phase of your life, please call us on 01822 617 960, email info@www.hansfordbell.co.uk, or fill in our online contact form, and we’ll be in touch.