We were introduced to a client who had not been receiving regular reviews of his Pension Income drawdown arrangement.

He was concerned about the performance of his funds and he had a need for more income. He had been told that as he was drawing the maximum he could not have any further, so was considering using his personal cash reserve to provide top ups,much against his wishes as he wanted to retain this money as a rainy day fund.

Following discussions it transpired that the client had annual State and a small Occupational Final Salary pension which together provided him with £14,500 pa. In his personal pension drawdown fund he had in excess of £325,000.

We advised client to consider Flexible Drawdown by using some of his personal pension fund to purchase a secure lifetime annuity of £5,500, sufficient to bring his total secure income to £20,000 including his state and occupational pension. This would then allow him to take much higher unlimited amounts from his remaining pension fund to meet any additional income he needed.

His cash reserve fund has been retained and is available to him in the future if needed and his pension fund now receives quarterly investment reviews to monitor performance to see if it continues to meet expectations. Client has more control and flexibility over his current and future income needs.