Blog
A deep-dive into a variety of pension topics to help you understand and learn more about your pension and the Scheme.
Our blogs will give you information, tips, insights and guidance to help you get to know your pension and support you on your journey to retirement.
The planner is designed to show you what your annual income could be when you stop work and how much you may be able to take as a tax-free lump sum.
It also lets you see what it might look like if you decide to start taking your benefits before claiming your State Pension and then level your income out afterwards. This is known as the ‘level pension’ option.
The planner is a quick and easy way to take control and make your pension work better for you. And we’ll be making even more improvements to it in the future.
Log into your myRPS account and go to the ‘Your pension planner’ section on the dashboard. Click ‘Try the planner’. Alternatively log into your online account and hover over the ‘myRPS
account’ menu. Go to the ‘Planning for the future’ section and click on ‘Pension Planner’.
There is also a list of FAQs at the bottom of the page.
You will already see the improvements we've made in comparison to the previous planner. This includes the use of
real-time data to calculate your benefits.
While this will give you a more accurate result, it might also take a little longer to perform the calculation. Please be patient and if it looks to be taking a little longer than expected, this
is probably because your real-time calculation is a little more complex.
Like the old one, the planner:
The improved planner also:
The planner's estimates are based on:
By simply using the plus and minus buttons in the planner, you can experiment with increasing or decreasing your:
This lets you see what may happen to your annual pension and lump sum if you're considering making any changes. It also lets you model different scenarios to see what your annual pension could be as a result.
Don't worry, the planner
won't make any changes to your record. But it will show you what could happen if you did make the changes.
It's all about giving you the information you need to make the right decision for you. It's also a great way to see your pension
benefits come to life and get a better view of what the future may hold.
The planner will show you how much your annual income is likely to be when you retire.
You can then compare this to the Retirement Living Standards (RLS) and decide for
yourself whether it's likely to be enough for you.
As a guideline, the RLS shows that an individual will need between £10,200 and £33,000 per year when they finish work. You can find out more by visiting the Retirement Living Standards
website.
We're busy building another new calculator using this RLS data to make it easier for you to judge how you may need and compare that to the results in the pension planner.
Once you have your pension planner results, you can decide whether to take any further action.
For example, you may choose to:
Before making any changes, you may want to get advice from an Independent Financial Adviser. You can find one in your area by using the Unbiased website. Remember to show them your pension planner results.
Please remember this planner
has been designed to show you what your retirement benefits could be based on the information we currently hold for you and the options you have selected.
The results shown by the planner are for illustration and comparison purposes only and do not guarantee any future outcome or entitlement. The results should not be replied upon for retirement planning. Your actual benefits in retirement could differ from the estimated figures shown.
We know that many members really valued the planner on the old website and we wanted to reinstate it as soon as possible after the new site launched in September/October last year.
The main delay came from making sure we improved the planner and give members what they wanted most.
Based on survey results, thousands of members told us there were clear priorities for us to deliver on the new site:
We put the new site live as soon as we had the online estimates ready and we're really pleased that more than 30,000 of you have already used the estimate tool.
You can now also see other periods of membership without having to log in with
a separate ID.
Improving the planner did take a little longer than points 1 and 2 listed above, but we're pleased to say:
For more information on what you can do with your online account, why not visit our Video Library? We also have videos on there about planning and saving, your retirement options, and tax and other pension topics.
Read the latest updates from the world of pensions and see how they affect you as a member of the Scheme.
We provide regular newsletters to help you navigate your pension whether you're paying into the Scheme, not paying in anymore, or receiving your pension.
Register with Platform today to have your say in how we communicate with you and other members about your pension.