Take up of the Pension Wise guidance service is growing. Between 2015/16 and 2017/18, take up of appointments more than doubled and continues to increase. Pension schemes and providers are required to signpost people to Pension Wise at key contact points. Pension providers are consistently cited by around half of the people who contact Pension Wise as the place they first heard of the service. The Financial Conduct Authority have consulted on changes to these requirements with a view to increasing the take up of Pension Wise guidance.<\/p>
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The Pension Wise marketing strategy across TV, Radio, web, Press and Video on Demand, as well as search engine optimisation, aims to get maximum reach amongst the target audience. This has proven to an effective way of both raising awareness of the service and driving take-up of appointments.<\/p>
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Pension Wise is also working with employers nationally and locally to engage with their employees at their place of work. Pension Wise delivery partners also undertake local promotional activities, raising awareness of the service at local events.<\/p>
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The Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018 establishes a new Single Financial Guidance Body which will bring together the services currently provided by the Money Advice Service, The Pensions Advisory Service and Pension Wise. The new body will make it easier for people to access information and guidance to help them make effective financial decisions. This Act also set a framework for implementing a stronger final nudge towards Pension Wise at the point people seek to access their pension and we are engaging with providers to find the most effective approach.<\/p>
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The 2016-17 Pension Wise service evaluation report did not specifically identify a group who are not pre-disposed to taking actions that help them make informed decisions on their pensions. It was predominantly a survey of Pension Wise customers, but included a group of non-users, for the purposes of comparison and to help understand why they had not used the service.<\/p>
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The latest Pension Wise service evaluation report has now been published and is available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-wise-service-evaluation-2017-to-2018-customer-experiences-and-outcomes<\/a><\/p> <\/p> Finally, the DWP has just issued a consultation on the Pensions Dashboard, which will specifically assist on the provision of information to all consumers on the issue of pensions and retirement planning.<\/p> <\/p> The dashboard statement can be found here:<\/p>