Which sipp

See our full analysis of fees and charges below. Bringing your pension savings together in a Sipp offers more opportunity to diversify and to keep track of where your money is invested. One of the main appeals of Sipps is that they allow you to invest in a wide variety of assets, including:. When we recently asked Sipp owners why they had opted for the product, nearly half said it was because they eventually wanted to use income drawdown — the most popular response.

How much you pay in charges is important. They are deducted from your pot regardless of how your investments perform and can dampen your returns. Over the long term, high fees can cost you thousands of pounds and limit the amount of money in your final retirement fund. Sipp providers have different charging structures that can make comparisons difficult. However, some companies charge both admin fees and platform fees, which will invariably push up overall costs.

Our table shows how much it will cost to manage your Sipp with 11 leading providers. Figures include platform and administration fees as a total value and as a percentage of the total pension value.

The money is invested entirely in funds and no trades are made. Rates were correct as of June Interactive Investor calculations uses the Investor subscription plan. The analysis shows that for smaller pots, providers charging percentage fees are more competitive.

Fixed-fee providers such as Interactive Investor and Halifax Share Dealing prove the most cost-effective for larger pots. We've asked thousands of real holders of Sipps to rate the services of the companies that offer.

They have told us about their experiences with customers service, investment choice and value for money. Using this information we've created a Which? Recommended Provider status. Members can log in to see the results of our expert analysis. If you're not already a member, join Which? Source: Online survey of 1, members of the general public, conducted in May Sipps can be an attractive home for existing pension pots currently tied up in other schemes.

You are most likely to transfer into a Sipp from a defined contribution pension scheme. The pension value depends on investment performance, how much you put in and the deduction of any charges. However, some employers will agree to make payments into your Sipp instead. Final salary or defined benefit DB schemes normally offer a very attractive deal.

As well as a guaranteed pension, they provide generous benefits for spouses that are hard to replicate in private schemes. Most SIPPs will let you access your pension by the age of This is different to the state pension age. The age that women can access their state pension is currently While it used to be lower for women than men, it was equalised three years ago.

You can decide to access your personal pension sooner than your state pension age. Most investment platforms offer a SIPP. Most investment platforms charge a platform fee for your pension funds. This is usually a percentage of your assets — although some companies do charge flat monthly fees.

Platform fees are sometimes called service fees, administration charges or custody charges, and they can be applied in different ways.

For example, the fee might be 0. But while firm A might charge 0. And some of those that do levy charges on this portion of your portfolio will cap them at a certain level. This may fall for investors who do more than a certain number of trades per month. Most companies have stopped charging platform fees for transferring your existing pension pot to another platform.

Some investment platforms even charge for transferring cash to another platform. A number of SIPPs charge you if you close your pension down within a year of opening it. This is most commonly applied if you open your SIPP and then move into retirement within a year and start drawing money down from your pension pot via income drawdown.

Watch out for management options with high charges. Our ratings only look at the day-to-day costs of maintaining your SIPP, and the cost of making trades. Remember, when it comes to investing, the only thing you can be sure of are the charges.

A top-rated SIPP will have lower than average ongoing SIPP charges and dealing costs and platform fees for investors that buy and sell funds and shares no more than twice a year.

Our independent star ratings are designed to help you choose a low-cost platform for your retirement savings — but do make sure it also has the right range of investments for your needs. Our customer experience ratings let you know how platforms are rated by their customers, as well as how good they are at handling complaints and how transparent they are.

James Daley is managing director of Fairer Finance , the independent consumer group that produces our best-buy product tables. Receive regular articles and guides from our experts to help you make smarter financial decisions. What is a Sipp? Last updated: Nov Plan your finances. Use our pension calculators to build a financial picture for your retirement. Pension tax relief calculator Pension tax calculator Income drawdown calculator.

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