Pension transfers rise 11% in Q2

Pension investments continued their strong upward trend with £8.4 billion of inflows (including transfers) - a 6.2% rise from the previous quarter.

SIPP sales rose by 7.9% (£302.8 million) compared to Q1 and 14.3% (£517.7 million) year-on-year, whereas personal pensions are down 6.8% on Q1 and new investments in individual stakeholder pensions plummeted by 28.6% to just £35.6 million. Equifax sats the popularity of these products continues to wane as more employees become part of auto-enrolment.

Conversely, the data shows that annuity sales for the second quarter soared by 20.0% (£93.1 million). Flexible drawdown investments also increased, with new investments and transfers jumping to £1.1 billion, up 15.0% (£145.0 million) on the previous quarter, and up 40.9% (£324.5million) year on year.

John Driscoll, Director at Equifax Touchstone, said: “It’s promising to see pension investments continue to grow strongly, despite market jitters in the run up to the UK referendum. There does however seem to be a stark divide in terms of investor types. SIPPs, typically used by wealthier investors, are showing strong growth, while investments into personal and individual stakeholder plans fell.  

“Auto-enrolment is making very positive steps to get more of the UK population saving but the industry still has a lot of work to do to encourage people to use retirement products and make the most of the tax advantages they offer. The choice of products available and the new pension rules can be confusing for consumers to navigate, and advisers have a valuable role in supporting their clients through the maze.”