The irony of the pension scene lies in the fact that we never know we need it, until we do, although the golden olden days of perks-packed employment packages is now past its comfort zone.
According to a recent survey, around 30% of British employees are unhappy with their little lots and would change jobs to obtain better benefits, a factor that includes pensions. While both contributory and non-contributory pension plans used to offer some form of protection for the future, a succession of unfortunate, although also understandable, pension ‘raids’ led to government intervention and a new legal framework for pension provision.
Known as NEST, the government-sponsored programme is exceptionally well-intentioned and promises a means of self-enrolment that should remove many of the potential headaches and heartaches related to pensions. However, governments, of all types and hues, tend to see only monochromatically and, despite purported transparency, black-and-white packages can be notoriously complex, not least in the amount of set-up time they demand.
While NEST is notionally free of charge and admirable for it, it is also inflexible and both employees and employers cannot tailor a pension plan to meet both sets of needs, especially should work circumstances alter. With politicians having endured painful finger burning in the post-2007 ‘economic crash’ period, their desire to avoid the negative aspects of monetary control is heightened somewhat, which both alleviates a situation and raises countless others.
Petaurum Solutions is a bespoke pension planning service. By tailoring the processes that aim to provide a viable post-employment pension scheme, both employees’ and employers’ rights remain unsullied, while the letter of the law is carried out in a less statutory manner. Bear in mind that the employer must absorb the overhead costs of NEST, which, for larger companies, will be a substantial sum of cash.
Let’s face it, whether operating a company supplied motorcar, or buying one for personal use, the motor industry has been serving purpose for much of the past two decades. Regarded as a thoroughly apt and modern facility, personalisation enables customers to add both value and customised features to ensure that the vehicle meets individual demands. The age of customisation is as prevalent as ever and that you can do it in future financial terms is an added bonus.
Naturally, there is an on-cost, a premium, if you will, charged by Petaurum for the additional services, although it is a value-added package, which carries out the assessment on your behalf, while also identifying the statutory elements that are entirely your responsibility. However, the Petaurum plan will more than prove its value by saving a lot of administrative time and effort, while ensuring that the individual programme matches your financial capabilities and grows with you, rather than creating an unwarranted dependency that does not but that you will be tied into for the rest of your working life.
While seeking job satisfaction will always remain an imponderable situation, reliant on innumerable external factors, planning for the future in conjunction with an employer is surely a practical and stabilising aspect. Pensions Auto Enrolment is not a non-compliance option. In these days of more flexible employment situations, there are efficiency benefits to be gained on both sides of the employment equation by selecting the Petaurum option.