HMRC issues pension 'liberation' alert

HMRC, which recently launched a campaign against pension ‘liberation' - or ‘unlocking' - schemes with The Pensions Regulator, said savers may be particularly swayed by incorrect claims that these firms can use a legal loophole to access the cash. "There is no loophole," HMRC warned. Very few people, it said, are permitted to take money out of their pensions before they are 55. The UK's official tax department added that, even if individuals take the initiative themselves to unlock their savings, some or all of it may be at stake. That is because a tax charge of up to 55% applies...