Pension transfer protections are changing. Overseas investment risk must not be hidden.

The Government has opened a consultation on new protections for people transferring pensions into Small Self-Administered Schemes, known as SSASs. You can read the Government consultation here:Protecting pension savers: proposals to amend the transfer regulations Some of the proposed changes are welcome. But one part of the proposal should concern anyone who cares about pension … Continue reading Pension transfer protections are changing. Overseas investment risk must not be hidden.

Only 9% Are on Course for a Comfortable Retirement. The Real Problem Is Not Just Pension Saving.

A newspaper headline this week captured something many people already feel in their bones: Only 9% of the working population are on course for a comfortable retirement. Another headline put the figure even more starkly: The £1.2m cost of a comfortable retirement in Britain today. The story is familiar. People are living longer. The cost … Continue reading Only 9% Are on Course for a Comfortable Retirement. The Real Problem Is Not Just Pension Saving.

The Wealth We Keep Forgetting: Lessons on Human Capital for Total Wealth Planners

For decades, financial planning has been built around a narrow idea of wealth. Money. Assets. Investments. Pensions. Portfolios. Tax wrappers. These things matter. But they are not the whole story. In many cases, they are not even the starting point. The deeper question is this: What enables a person to live well, adapt, contribute, recover, … Continue reading The Wealth We Keep Forgetting: Lessons on Human Capital for Total Wealth Planners

How can an adviser provide ongoing advice to someone who has died?

Following reports that the FCA has asked advice firms whether they continue to charge ongoing fees after a client has died, the central question is simple: what service is actually being provided, and to whom? Ongoing advice fees are only defensible where there is an ongoing service, such as suitability reviews or active support, and … Continue reading How can an adviser provide ongoing advice to someone who has died?

Total Wealth Planner™: For Capable People Who Want Clarity Without Handing Over Control

Most financially capable people manage their own money successfully. You pay the bills. You run the household. You make sensible choices. You understand your income, pensions, savings, mortgage, family responsibilities, and future hopes well enough to get through ordinary life. But some moments are not ordinary. Retirement. Pension drawdown. Inheritance. Tax. Divorce. Bereavement. Later-life planning. … Continue reading Total Wealth Planner™: For Capable People Who Want Clarity Without Handing Over Control

Get Secure Has Launched: The Bridge to Freedom for People Living with Financial Insecurity

Get Secure Has Launched: The Bridge to Freedom for People Living with Financial Insecurity Financial planning has a problem. The people who most need help navigating financial insecurity are often the people least likely to receive meaningful planning support. Not because they lack ability. Not because they lack potential. But because the traditional financial advice … Continue reading Get Secure Has Launched: The Bridge to Freedom for People Living with Financial Insecurity

Why Are We Teaching Children About Financial Capital Before Human Capital?

The missing asset in school financial education There is a strange imbalance at the heart of financial education. Children are taught about money. They may learn about budgeting, saving, spending, borrowing, interest, pensions, and perhaps investing. These are useful topics. Nobody serious would argue that young people should leave school unable to understand debt, savings, … Continue reading Why Are We Teaching Children About Financial Capital Before Human Capital?

Do Good Works Excuse Asset-Hoovering?

A financial advice firm may do visible good in its local community: supporting charities, funding financial education, sponsoring grassroots sport, planting trees, and gaining credentials such as B Corp status. These activities may be sincere and worthwhile. But they do not, on their own, answer a separate consumer-protection question. If the firm’s commercial model includes … Continue reading Do Good Works Excuse Asset-Hoovering?

When Money Worries Become Health Worries: Why Income Security Is a Whole-Person Issue

Three-quarters of employees are now cutting back on routine healthcare because of the cost of living. That should stop us in our tracks. This is not just about people delaying a dental appointment, skipping an eye test, or putting off physiotherapy. It is a warning sign that financial pressure is spreading into every area of … Continue reading When Money Worries Become Health Worries: Why Income Security Is a Whole-Person Issue

2.2 Million People Think Pension Engagement Is Pointless. That Should Worry Us All.

Ask My Pension is now in free beta at AskMyPension.app — built to help people ask clearer pension questions before they give up. A new report from People’s Pension should give everyone in financial planning pause. According to research reported by Zoe Wickens, one in eight employees — around 2.2 million people — say it … Continue reading 2.2 Million People Think Pension Engagement Is Pointless. That Should Worry Us All.