The government has given the green light to allow pension providers to create user-friendly services that display pension information for individuals on-line.
Savers will be in the driving seat with all the facts and figures about their pensions and potential retirement income at their fingertips in one place for the first time – on smartphones, tablets and computers.
Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd said:
With record numbers saving for retirement as a result of our revolutionary reforms, it’s more important than ever that people understand their pensions and prepare for financial security in later life.
Dashboards have the potential to transform the way we all think about and plan for retirement, providing clear and simple information regarding pension savings in one place online. I’m looking forward to seeing the first industry dashboards later this year.
Key details of the government’s plans, published today in its response to a consultation on dashboards, include:
- a commitment to bring forward legislation at the earliest opportunity to compel all pension providers to make consumers’ data available to them through a dashboard,
- an expectation that the majority of schemes will be ready to ‘go live’ with their data within a 3 to 4 year window,
- confirmation that State Pension information will be included as soon as possible,
- dashboards will help to reconnect people with ‘lost’ pension pots, benefitting savers and providers.
Ministers support the development of multiple industry-led dashboards displaying the same basic information. Industry have told government that initial models will be developed and tested from this year. A non-commercial dashboard will be delivered and overseen by the new Single Financial Guidance Body (SFGB).
An industry delivery group will be brought together by the SFGB which will set out a clear timetable and roadmap to drive progress towards fully operational dashboards, setting standards and ensuring security to protect users and their information.