Frequently asked questions.

It depends on your circumstances. Some pensions run perfectly well without regular attention. Others – particularly older workplace pensions or pensions you have accumulated across multiple employers – benefit from being reviewed. The key question is whether what you have is still appropriate for where you are now and what you want in retirement. If you have not looked at your pension arrangements in several years, it is worth understanding what you actually have.

Not necessarily. Consolidating pensions can make them easier to manage and sometimes reduces costs, but it is not always the right answer. Some older pensions carry guaranteed benefits or features that would be lost on transfer. Before consolidating anything, it is important to understand what each pension actually contains and whether anything would be given up by moving it. This is exactly the kind of question we would work through with you before making any recommendation.

Earlier than most people do. The earlier you have a clear picture of what you are likely to have at retirement and what you actually need, the more options you have. That said, it is never too late to look at this properly. Whether retirement is thirty years away or three, understanding your position clearly is the starting point for any sensible planning.

Risk assessment is one of the first things we work through with every client. It involves understanding both your attitude to risk – how you feel about the possibility of your investment falling in value – and your capacity for loss, which is the financial impact you could actually absorb if it did. The right level of risk is personal to your circumstances. We will never recommend an investment that carries more risk than your situation warrants.

Both are tax-efficient ways of investing but they work differently and suit different purposes. A pension gives you tax relief on contributions going in but restrictions on when you can access the money. An ISA gives you no upfront tax relief but complete flexibility on when and how you access it. For most people, the right answer involves both – the balance between them depends on your income, your tax position, your age and what you are trying to achieve. This is something we work through as part of the advice process.

No. Nobody can, and anyone who tells you otherwise is not giving you honest advice. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invest. What we can do is make sure the investment is appropriate for your circumstances, your risk profile and your objectives – and explain clearly what the realistic range of outcomes looks like before you commit to anything.

The honest answer is that it depends on your circumstances rather than your age or health. The relevant questions are: do you have dependants who rely on your income, do you have debts that would pass to others, and could the people in your life manage financially without you? If the answer to any of those is yes, protection is worth considering. Being young and healthy is also precisely when cover is cheapest and easiest to obtain – a fact that tends to matter more in hindsight than in the moment.

They cover different risks. Life insurance pays out on death. Critical illness cover pays a lump sum on diagnosis of a specified serious illness. Income protection replaces a proportion of your income if you are unable to work due to illness or injury. They are not alternatives to each other – they address different financial vulnerabilities. Which combination makes sense for you depends on your employment situation, your financial commitments and what your employer already provides.

Employer-provided cover is usually a multiple of your salary – commonly two to four times. Whether that is enough depends entirely on your personal financial position: your mortgage, your dependants, your debts and what your family would need to maintain their standard of living. It is also worth noting that employer cover typically ends when your employment ends. We look at this as part of a broader protection review rather than in isolation.

A trust is a legal arrangement that allows assets to be held and managed for the benefit of specific people. They are used for a variety of purposes – protecting assets for children, managing inheritance tax, ensuring life insurance proceeds reach the right people without going through probate. Whether you need one depends on your circumstances and objectives. Trusts are not just for the very wealthy – they can be a straightforward and practical tool for a range of situations. We would only recommend one where it genuinely serves your needs.

Yes, often significantly. A life insurance policy written in trust means the proceeds are paid directly to your chosen beneficiaries without forming part of your estate. This typically means faster payment, no probate delay, and – depending on your estate’s value – potential inheritance tax benefits. It is a relatively straightforward step that is frequently overlooked. We review this as part of any protection advice.

Assets held in trust may be outside your estate for inheritance tax purposes, depending on the type of trust and how it is structured. This is an area where the rules are specific and the detail matters. We work alongside solicitors on trust arrangements where legal advice is required – we will always be clear about where our role ends and where specialist legal input is needed.