Chris Knight: Don't let annuities get written out of the picture

Holistic retirement income plan

clock • 4 min read

Pension freedom may have given people more control over their retirement income but, warns Chris Knight, a lack of awareness about the various income options available means thousands of people are defaulting to drawdown

Some might conclude it is not looking too good for the annuities market at the moment. The recent Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) bulletin, for example, reports the number of annuity sales has fallen to its lowest level since then-Chancellor George Osborne introduced pension freedoms two and a half years ago. At the same time, continued uncertainty in the market is being fuelled by cautionary headlines such as "Britain's annuity market is facing extinction". And yet a closer look at how annuities are performing reveals things are nowhere near as bad as the doomsayers claim. There ha...

To continue reading this article...

Join Professional Adviser for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, industry insights and market intelligence
  • Stay ahead of the curve with spotlights on emerging trends and technologies
  • Receive breaking news stories straight to your inbox in the daily newsletters
  • Make smart business decisions with the latest developments in regulation, investing retirement and protection
  • Members-only access to the editor’s weekly Friday commentary
  • Be the first to hear about our events and awards programmes

Join

 

Already a Professional Adviser member?

Login

More on Retirement

The advice dividend in an age of retirement uncertainty

The advice dividend in an age of retirement uncertainty

The UK pensions landscape has become progressively more complicated in recent decades

Andrew Tully
clock 17 February 2026 • 4 min read
Royal London introduces CRP framework to help advisers

Royal London introduces CRP framework to help advisers

Support when developing retirement income strategies for clients

Jenna Brown
clock 29 January 2026 • 1 min read
Just Group sees fall in retirement income sales as takeover approaches

Just Group sees fall in retirement income sales as takeover approaches

Brookfield Wealth Solutions to takeover during first half of the year

Isabel Baxter
clock 20 January 2026 • 2 min read