Pensions Week: Step 5 – Check For Lost Pension Pots

There’s around £31.1 billion sitting in lost or forgotten pension pots, according to data from Pensions UK.

Since 2012, employers are required to automatically enrol employees into a workplace pension if they meet certain criteria.

Unless you specifically opt out, there’s a chance that you have a pension for every job that you’ve held since then.

The good news is that there’s a simple way to track down pension pots you might have lost touch with.

Here’s how:

1. Use a free pension finder

Investing Insiders has partnered up with Gretel to provide a free Pension Tracing service.

You’ll just need to create an account and follow the step-by-step registration process.

Once you’re registered, Gretel runs an extensive search for any pension pots in your name.

2. Contact the pension company

You’ll need to contact the pension companies to claim your pension pot.

Some pension finding services provide a unique reference number for your pension.

However, if one wasn’t available, the pension company can help you find yours. And you may need to supply additional information or evidence to confirm your employment at the time.

3. Consider combining your pots

In some cases, it might help to combine certain pension pots together to make them easier to manage and reduce the impact of fees on your return.

However, it won’t be the case for everyone. If you’re unsure about the right step for you, consider speaking with an expert advisor.

You might be eligible for a consultation through your work, so it’s worth checking with HR to see if you’re entitled to speak with a professional.

Once you’ve done this, move on to step 6: check you’ll have enough to retire.

This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute personal financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances before making changes to your pension, and seek regulated advice if unsure.