Free Saga guide to navigating the annuity maze

Saga Personal Finance has developed a guide to annuities that is designed to help people understand how to enhance their retirement income and make the most of their pension fund at retirement. The guide is designed to de-mystify annuities and retirement income options by giving information on the variety of choices available and in what circumstances they may be suitable.

The Open Market Option (OMO) was introduced by the FSA to give consumers one opportunity to shop around for their annuity and compare the value offered by the company holding their pensions savings against alternative providers. According to research less than half (40%) of people take advantage of the OMO.

Saga's advice to people who are approaching retirement is to consider alternative options for their retirement income and search the market for providers offering the best terms before committing to their existing pension provider. There are many options available and products can be complex, so before making any decisions people should refer to specialist advisers to help explain all the alternatives.

Quite often the type of annuity offered by the current pension company may not be the best for their individual circumstances. For example, it may not offer an income linked to inflation or the individual may prefer to opt for an annuity to guarantee payments for a certain period of time, even if they pass away in the interim. It is also unlikely to take into account any existing health problems that could mean that an impaired life annuity could be suitable which can significantly increase the income. For example, Openwork who provide the service for Saga have helped a smoker increase their annuity income by 28% and a client with cancer by 70%.

Saga have designed a guide to demonstrate that the process should not be feared, in fact, with the right assistance it is probably no more complicated than changing mortgage provider which is now familiar to us all.

To call for a guide or to discuss annuity options with a Saga expert please visit saga.co.uk.