Maps, which was made up of the merger of Pension Wise, the Money Advice Service and The Pension Advisory Service, officially launched in April 2019 and is a joined-up service for everything guidance, from debt help to money and pensions guidance.
At a listening event in London yesterday (June 20), Maps asked various stakeholders across the industry for their opinions on how the service can improve the guidance it gives to individuals and how it can encourage people to engage with their savings.
It also asked what it should spend its £190m budget on and how to best distribute its resources.
A common theme across the room was that the body needed to communicate with individuals about their pension savings across key stages of their life, for example, when entering work for the first time or reaching retirement age.
People from companies such as XPS Pensions, Legal & General and Just Group, as well as the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, were in favour of Maps pushing employers and pension providers to offer mid-life MOTs.
A mid-life MOT would be aimed at individuals approaching the age of 45 and would provide them with guidance on what they should be doing to improve their pension pot for retirement.
In February, the Department for Work and Pensions launched a portal promoting mid-life MOTs to businesses.
The website includes guidance for people who want a financial and physical stock-take at a crucial point in their careers, the DWP stated.
Another suggestion was for Maps to provide targeted pensions guidance for people aged 50, although some thought a better suited age for this would be 55.
Tailored guidance for people in this age bracket could help people focus on how to manage their pension pots in the best way, some respondents stated.
Others believed that rather than targeting those approaching retirement, Maps should focus its resources on educating the younger generation to get them engaged with their pension from an early age.
They also wanted tailored communications for various age groups. For example using podcasts and technology to appeal to younger savers.
Another suggestion was for Maps to use auto-enrolment to engage people.
It was suggested that the guidance service could approach people in auto-enrolment every three years to provide them with a mini review of how their pension was performing and remind them of what they should be doing to ensure a comfortable retirement.
However, some warned if people were made aware that they were auto-enrolled in a pension they may choose to opt out.
Another issue with this proposal was that it would not capture the self-employed.
Maps asked the respondents how it could balance resources between preventative work (for example pensions guidance, financial education) and crisis support (such as debt advice) and whether one should be prioritised over the over.
Some said financial education was important to prevent people from getting into debt.
However, others argued that debt crisis cannot always be predicted or prevented, for example for individuals going through a bereavement or who have mental health issues.
It was suggested that Maps should spread its reach as far as possible and try and help everyone.
One reason given for this was that individuals do not always know they need guidance until it is too late. For example, individuals may not realise they have not saved enough into their pension until they reach retirement age.
The London listening event was the penultimate in a series of 10 roadshows where advisers and other industry experts had their say on Maps’ future strategy.
The series of events, which will run until the end of June, saw Maps visit Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Dartford, Edinburgh, Leeds, London, Manchester and Peterborough.
Last week, June 11, it was announced that John Govett had resigned as chief executive of Maps, just two months after it was officially launched, due to "an impending family relocation".
Caroline Siarkiewicz, currently partnerships and commissioning director at Maps, was appointed as interim chief executive, effective from June 14, while the body conducts a search process for a permanent appointment.
The new Maps website will go live towards the end of 2019, and will use the findings from the roadshows to enhance its offering.
Until then, guidance will continue to be available through the websites of the previous component parts of the Money and Pensions Service – Pension Wise, the Money Advice Service and The Pensions Advisory Service.
amy.austin@ft.com
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