Income

In this week's quick fire annuity-themed poll we ask: Do you think ‘Middle Britain' retirees are ill-served by conventional annuities?

ANNUITIES

Advisers have warned that consumers who use annuity comparison websites could end up 'self-harming' and 'paying for their mistakes' for the rest of their lives.

Severe delays and errors have hit the payment scheme set up by government to compensate victims of Equitable Life, a report from the National Audit Office (NAO) has found.

The Pension Income Choice Association (PICA) has appointed The Annuity Exchange to build a new directory of retirement income intermediaries.

The "high profile" of Tesco will boost retirees' inclination to shop around for the most appropriate pension income product after the supermarket giant announced it is to launch an annuity comparison service, according to Tom McPhail.

Tesco is awaiting regulatory approval to launch an online annuity comparison service, though it does not plan to launch own-brand annuity products.

FIVE THINGS

The annuity market faces a ‘tipping point' as more ‘Middle Britain' savers could benefit from alternative retirement options, warns a new report.

In this Retirement Planner quick fire poll we ask: Is the rise of annuity self-service websites a good thing for consumers?