Transforming annuities

With the financial crisis leaving the UK facing up to the prospect of a prolonged period of fiscal austerity, the government has been praised for taking stringent steps to address the deficit through its Comprehensive Spending Review. The Treasury’s review into the removal of the effective compulsion to purchase an annuity at age 75 goes a lot further than simply removing an arbitrary age limit. The consultation document includes the potential, for those who can afford it, to avoid having to take their pension benefits in the form of an income at all. It also considers changes to the treat...