Retirement

Retirement specialist LV= has boosted the number of funds available through its pension platform by 15.

The proportion of Defined Benefit (DB) schemes open to new entrants is expected to fall from 25% to 18% by 2010 and 14% in the next 5-10 years, according to Watson Wyatt's Pension Plan Design Survey 2008.

Rowanmoor Pensions has been selected to take over the Skandia's £13.7m Small Self-Administered Schemes (SSAS) book of business.

The most common single source of complaints against pension schemes was decisions not to award ill-health pensions, the Pensions Ombudsman says in its Annual Report and Accounts for 2007/8 .

Skandia Life is pulling out of the SSAS pension market and transferring its business to specialists Rowanmoor Pensions.

Independent financial advice remains the best route to saving correctly and preparing for retirement, Vince Cable says.

The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA) says the majority of respondents to its charging consultation paper are split between an AMC-only structure or an AMC plus contribution charge.

Personal account charges will struggle to fall below 0.8% if New Zealand's equivalent auto-enrolment scheme is used as a guide, Standard Life says.

Only 10% of advisers would look to purchase an annuity with the whole amount of their pension savings, according to Skandia.

Pension schemes may be suffering because too many are overweight in UK equities, according to Alexander Forbes.