Figures published this week seem to suggest that, following the pension reforms, the death of annuities has been grossly exaggerated. In fact the numbers are actually rising.
This got me thinking. Have we underestimated the need for certainty – the strong desire for a predicted level of regular income, even if suppressed by very low interest rates?
Or have we overestimated the extent to which pensioners have been made aware, and fully understand, the (albeit taxable) cash options open to them?
Michael Lindsey
Freelance exam consultant,
Leighton Buzzard,
Bedfordshire
