Sometimes it is good to share the day to day concerns we all have whether it is health, family worries and personal finance. The recent budget has highlighted something we all have to manage and think about, our pension pot and the future
Jane Vass, head of policy at Age UK, said people would need to bear in mind that drawing down on their pension could make them ineligible for free social care..
“The pension pot is protected from means testing. So when it is in a pension it can’t be touched but there is a risk when it comes out of that wrapper. We do welcome the increased choice but there is a whole range of risks. The better-off might be able to afford to take risks and afford to pay for advice, but it becomes difficult for those lower down the economic spectrum.”
Writing in The Observer, Toby Helm, Daniel Boffey and Harriet Meyer
“The Prime Minister said that those who choose to take large sums from their pension pots under the Government’s reforms could be pushed over the limit.
However, he said that people “have a choice” about whether they take out an annuity or decide to withdraw their money and invest it elsewhere.
“The point about care homes is important. I know there is a concern that if you take your money out of your pension pot and have it as your own money, it counts as your money when you are assessed for care needs. That is true, that is the case, but you have the choice,” he said.
People who cash in their pensions under the government reforms may end up paying more for their care, David Cameron has admitted. From 2016, people with assets of more than £118,000, including their own homes, will have to pay for their social care in old age.