What are the costs of delay in converting your personal pension to an annuity?

Naturally, you will want to ensure the maximum possible lifelong income from your annuity. What you may not realise, however, is that even the shortest delay in converting your pension fund to an annuity will reduce this income. Quite simply, the longer you delay, the higher the impact on your income.

• Delaying the purchase of a standard annuity by a year will lose you a year’s income – a far greater sum than any potential increase in rates in a year’s time.
• You also need to consider the implications of increasing age on your health. It makes sense to enjoy the income now and for longer – whilst you’re still healthy. With mortality drag, those dying sooner cross subsidise those who live longer.
• People who remain invested are at the mercy of the market. If the value of your pension fund decreases, so does the size of the annuity you can purchase and therefore, the income you will earn from it.

Example

Male or female with £100,000 in a pension choosing a level annuity, no guarantee paid monthly in advance, assuming that the existing fund continues to grow at 5.0% per annum (after charges) and retiring at ages 55, 60 and 65. By delaying either 1, 3 or 5 years it will take a number of years before a deferred higher annuity income will 'catch-up' with the income already paid, or number of years to break even. This time could be longer than the individual’s life expectancy (years to live), or mortality as follows:

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