Personal Pension
How it works
There are two main ways to start using a SIPP with us. Either transfer your old pensions or open a new SIPP and begin contributing today.
Before transferring any pension, it’s important to check whether you might lose valuable benefits, guarantees or protections.
Please note: this service is currently only available to individuals aged under 50.
Signing up
Sign up online to get started. You’ll need to provide some basic details including your legal name; current address; date of birth; and National Insurance number. We use these details to carry out identity and security checks.
Give your SIPP a head start
If you are transferring a pension, simply provide the name(s) of your previous pension provider(s) and the account or policy number if you know them. The more information you can give us, the smoother the transfer process is likely to be. Pension transfers can take some time to complete, and some pensions include benefits that may be lost when transferring. We’ll keep you updated throughout the process.
Choose how your pension is invested
You can choose how your pension is invested in one of two ways:
Option 1 – Target-date fund
A target date fund gradually adjusts how your money is invested as you
approach your chosen retirement date, typically reducing investment risk over time.
Option 2: Choose your own investments
You can select your own funds from a range chosen by our investment
team. If you choose this option, you should be comfortable making investment decisions and understanding the risks involved.
Understanding investment risk
All investments involve risk. This means the value of your pension can rise and fall over time, and you could get back less than you invest.
Different investments carry different levels of risk:
- Lower risk investments usually have smaller ups and downs, but may grow more slowly over the long term
- Higher risk investments can offer greater long term growth potential, but their value can fall sharply in some years
How comfortable you feel with these changes is important. Some people are happy to see their pension value move around as markets change, while others prefer a steadier approach, even if that means lower potential growth.
Things to consider
You may find it useful to consider:
- How you would feel if your pension fell in value during a market downturn
- How long you expect to stay invested before taking money from your pension
- Whether you prefer a target-date fund option or making your own investment choices
There’s no right or wrong attitude to risk. What matters is choosing an approach you’re comfortable with and likely to stick with over the long term.
We provide information to help you understand your options, but we do not provide advice or recommend a particular investment approach.
What happens if I don’t choose an investment?
If you don’t make an investment choice, your pension will be invested into a target‑date fund by default.
The target date is set using your date of birth and your expected State Pension age. This is intended to reflect when you may start accessing your pension.
Target‑date funds are designed to automatically adjust how your pension is invested over time, typically reducing investment risk as you approach the target date. This default option is provided to ensure your pension is invested, but it may not be right for everyone. You can review or change your investments at any time through your online account.
Choosing your own investments or reviewing the default option regularly can help ensure your pension continues to match your preferences and comfort level with risk.