Pension Transfers: How They Work, Benefits and Things to Consider
Regularly taking time to check your pension is one of the most effective ways to protect your retirement income. Whether you have a workplace pension, a personal pension, a private pension, or several pots accumulated over the years, reviewing your savings ensures you understand their value, how they are invested, what you are paying in charges, and whether your money is working hard for you.
Below, we explain how to check your pension step by step, how to assess performance and fees, how to review your State Pension forecast, and what to do if you cannot find an old pension pot.
Why Checking Your Pension Matters
Most people assume their pension will grow in the background. However, failing to review it regularly can result in:
- Paying higher charges than necessary
- Staying in outdated or unsuitable investment funds
- Missing out on valuable benefits
- Discovering too late that your pension is worth less than expected
A regular pension check helps you:
- Understand how much you’ve saved so far
- Confirm whether you’re on track for retirement
- Identify whether better value options exist
- Make informed decisions about consolidating pots
- Adjust contributions or investments before it’s too late
Checking your pension periodically can significantly improve your long-term financial outcome.
How to Check Your Pension Details
To begin your review, gather as much information as possible about each pension you hold. Providers usually send an annual statement, but you can request information at any time.
When you check your pension details, look for:
- Provider name
- Policy or plan number
- Current fund value
- Investment funds and risk level
- Annual charges
- Any guarantees (e.g., protected tax-free cash, guaranteed annuity rates)
- Your selected retirement age
If you’re unsure how to check your pension, start by contacting each pension provider or logging in to your online account.
How to Check Your Pension Pot Value
Understanding the size of your pot is a core part of retirement planning. Most providers enable you to log in online, giving real-time valuations.
Ways to check your pension pot value:
- Online portal: Almost all modern pension providers have online dashboards showing your current fund value, contributions, and investment performance.
- Annual statement: Each year, your provider sends a statement summarising your pot value and projected income at retirement.
- Request a current value: If you’re unsure how to check your pension, you can call or email your provider and ask for an up-to-date valuation.
- Through a financial adviser: Advisers can request full information, including charges and performance history, helping reveal the true value of your pension.
Example:
If your statement shows your pension is worth £68,500 today, the statement may also project what it could be worth at ages 60, 65 and 68, based on assumed growth rates.
Checking your pot regularly makes it easier to see whether your savings are on track or whether adjustments are needed.
How to Check Your Pension Charges
Pension charges have a significant impact on long-term growth. Even a small difference of 0.5% versus 1.5% can reduce your future pension by tens of thousands of pounds.
Types of charges to look for
Providers list all charges in your statement or online account. When you check your pension, look out for the following:
- Annual management charge (AMC): The fee for managing your investments
- Fund charges: Some funds charge extra for specialist investment strategies
- Administration fees: Set-up or annual administration costs
- Transaction charges: Costs for buying or selling assets inside the fund
- Exit fees: Less common now, but still applied by some older pensions
A comparison table:
| Charge Type | Typical Range | Why It Matters |
| AMC | 0.2% – 1% | Lower AMCs help your pot grow faster |
| Fund fees | 0% – 1.5% | Higher charges may reduce net returns |
| Exit fees | 0% – 5% | Affects decisions about moving pensions |
| Transaction fees | Variable | Harder to see but affects performance |
If your charges are high, you may want to explore whether transferring to a lower-cost plan is beneficial—though this requires regulated advice if guarantees are involved.
How to Check Your Pension’s Investment Performance
Knowing how your pension is invested, and how those investments are performing, is essential. When reviewing your pension’s investment performance, you should look for:
- The fund’s growth over 1, 3 and 5 years
- Its risk level (e.g., cautious, balanced, adventurous)
- Performance, whether it meets or falls behind similar funds
- Retirement date and whether this matches your investment strategy
Comparing growth
Understanding how well your pension is performing is key to knowing whether your savings are on track. Your online pension dashboard will typically show charts comparing past growth with your contribution history. For a more detailed look, a Fund Factsheet outlines the fund’s long-term returns, its risk rating and how your money is invested.
Pension Performance Checklist:
✓ Does the fund consistently lag behind its benchmark?
✓ Has your pension failed to move into lower-risk investments as you near retirement?
✓ Is the fund older, expensive or based on an outdated investment strategy?
If any of these apply, it may be time to review your pension’s performance. A financial adviser can help identify whether switching funds or adjusting your strategy could deliver better long-term outcomes.
How to Check Your Pension’s Terms and Retirement Age
Your pension terms determine when you can take money, how you access it, and any guarantees you may lose if you transfer the pot.
When performing a pension check, look at the following:
- Selected retirement age (many are set to 65 by default)
- Whether the plan allows drawdown
- Guaranteed annuity rates (GARs)
- Protected tax-free cash
- Transfer penalties
- Death benefits rules
Example:
Some older pensions allow a tax-free cash amount above the standard 25%. Others include guarantees that offer income far above today’s annuity rates. These benefits are valuable and should be evaluated before transferring.
How to Check Your State Pension Forecast
Your private and workplace pensions are only part of your retirement income. The State Pension provides an important foundation.
You can check your forecast using the Government’s official tool, which shows:
- Your estimated State Pension amount
- Whether you have gaps in your National Insurance record
- How many qualifying years have you completed
- Your State Pension age
- Whether you’re on track to receive the full amount
Checking this early ensures you have time to fill gaps, if beneficial.
What to Do if You Can’t Find an Old Pension
Losing track of a pension from a previous job is more common than you might think. If you’re not sure how to check pension information for an older scheme, begin by finding anything that links you to the employer or pension provider, for example, old payslips, HR letters, pension statements or even the company name and dates you worked there. Your National Insurance number will also help confirm your identity.
If none of these points point you in the right direction, your next step is to trace the pension formally.
How to Trace a Lost or Forgotten Pension
If you’re unsure who your pension provider is, the Government offers a free tool to help you trace old or forgotten pensions. Their Pension Tracing Service can search former employers and pension providers to identify the scheme linked to your employment history.
You can search using:
- Employer name
- Scheme name
- Past employer details
The service does not tell you the value of your pension. It only provides contact details so you or an adviser can follow up. If you still struggle, a regulated adviser can make enquiries on your behalf.
When to Consider Combining Your Pensions
Reviewing whether to combine your pensions is an important part of checking your retirement planning and can make managing your savings easier.
Reasons people consolidate:
- To reduce charges
- To simplify multiple pots
- To move to a modern plan with flexible access (drawdown)
- To improve investment options
When consolidation may not be suitable:
- If your pension has a guaranteed annuity rate
- If it includes protected tax-free cash
- If high exit fees apply
- If transferring could reduce valuable benefits
A regulated adviser must assess whether transferring is suitable, especially if your pension pot is large or includes guarantees.
How My Pension Expert Helps You Review and Improve Your Pension
Checking your pension can be time-consuming, and many people find the terminology, charges and projections difficult to interpret. My Pension Expert provides clear, regulated guidance to help you understand exactly where you stand and how you could strengthen your long-term financial goals.
How we support you:
A full review of your pension charges – we break down every fee you’re paying, including management charges, policy fees and investment costs to show whether you’re receiving good value or losing money unnecessarily.
Performance analysis against benchmarks – we assess how your pension investments have performed in comparison to similar funds and market standards, highlighting strengths and identifying any areas of concern.
Clarity on consolidation – if you have multiple pensions, we help determine whether combining them could simplify management, reduce charges or improve overall growth potential.
Investment suitability assessment – we review how your pension is invested to ensure it reflects your risk level, time until retirement and long-term objectives.
Review of pension terms, retirement age and guarantees – some pensions include valuable guarantees or restrictions. We help you understand exactly what applies to you before making any decisions.
Personalised retirement forecasting – we model what your pension could be worth in the future, based on your contributions, charges and investment approach, giving you a clearer picture of your expected retirement income.
Tracing lost or forgotten pensions – if you suspect you have an old pension but can’t locate it, we help track it down and bring it back into your retirement planning.
My Pension Expert’s role is to help you review your pension with confidence, understand your options clearly and make decisions that support your financial wellbeing throughout retirement.
