Stakeholder Pensions

5. Keeping the Costs Down

Setting up a stakeholder pension will inevitably involve you in time and effort. However, there may be scope for limiting the overall costs.

5.1 Review your existing pension arrangements.

• It may make sense to extend the eligibility criteria that apply to your existing arrangements, in order to gain exemption.
• It may make sense to offer stakeholder pensions prior to membership of your existing scheme, especially to employees who are unlikely to stay for long.

5.2 Find out whether a stakeholder pension scheme is being offered by any of the affinity groups to which your company or its employees belong.

• For example, your trade association or the trade union to which your staff belong may have set up an arrangement for members.

5.3 Compare providers' terms and arrangements.

• Some may save you time and trouble by offering more help with administration or better marketing materials.
• Check investment performance too. Professional financial advisers can guide you on relative investment performance.