Running Out Of Money, is your pension secure?

[Snowy79]

We are already seeing it in the UK where the age of retirement is increasing with the excuse that people are living longer. In the same study they are explaining we have an obesity epidemic and more people will die younger. Go figure.

I think the biggest worry should be currency fluctuations more than the pension getting cut. I've not experienced it much but I've seen as far as the pound sterling is concerned the Peso fluctuating from about 67 to 59 back and forwards. Some old timers tell me at one time it was sitting just under 100 peso the the pound. Now if the peso dropped to 25 to the pound there would be tears before bed time. For this reason as others I've invested in somewhere to live as accommodation is my largest expenditure.

[Jack Peterson]

5 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

Some old timers tell me at one time it was sitting just under 100 peso the the pound. Now if the peso dropped to 25 to the pound there would be tears before bed time.

 Point taken BUT I worked on the assumption (Bad word) that 50 was my crying figure but again, it will not happen as long as the $ is king and it is 

[Gary D]

On my first visit to the Philippines 23 years ago there was around 38 pesos to the pound sterling. Over the years it reached 106 briefly and now bounces around 60. When I was getting 38 it was the cheapest time in the Philippines in my tenure. Inflation is the killer not exchange rates.

[hk blues]

23 hours ago, Jack Peterson said:

Mike can I ask if you can expand on this, I don't see my pension as a benefit but and Earned old age salary am I to understand that your SS is a benefit and not a pension. Sometimes I think we can get hold of the wrong end of the Stick when we see the word Benefit, We in the UK only get from the state a UK age related pension ( + whatever privates we have, and our Military pension (if served) We get absolutely Nothing in benefits from the UK and have lost most of them by living here. If we return ( we would have to re-apply for all) so I just wonder, Sorry if this puts you on the spot 

Some pension schemes use the word benefit in their title, including a couple i'm a member of. Some may be confusing benefit in it's simple sense with welfare benefits, two different things yet both paid by the same government so are they really materially different? What's in a name, eh?

It's not necessarily true we get nothing in benefits from the UK and have lost most of them (that in itself is a contradiction surely) and would have to reapply on return to the UK. Anyone making voluntary class 2 or 3 contributions whilst in a country with reciprocal agreements with the UK - which includes the Philippines - retains the right to some benefits and would be able to claim them on return to the UK should they do so.

Just to add for info - the abolition of class 2 NI has just been postponed to April 2019. 

Moving on to the 'state pension' - there is a lot of scaremongering in the political press regarding this. The fact is, the age to receive state pension has only increased twice, with a gap of at least 10 years between each increase and they are phased in over a long period of time. There is an understanding in place that states no change can be made to anyones pension benefits (sorry Jack) provided they are less than 10 years from retirement. In short, anyone who is 55 now and is worried that the state pension will be gone by the time they are 65 is wearing the most pessimistic glasses available. Do people seriously envisage a country like the UK having no state pension in the next 10, 20 or even 30 years? The country would collapse into a civil war of sorts.

[Jack Peterson]

14 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Do people seriously envisage a country like the UK having no state pension in the next 10, 20 or even 30 years? The country would collapse into a civil war of sorts.

 Quite True and very believable but what I was getting at is that there are No benefits for us to claim here that we could claim for should we live in the UK, I lived in Spain for many years and the same applied there, many of the benefits that would normally go with Retirement are just not an option for us here, and very few in Spain. Prescriptions is a big one for me. I know many here and many more in Spain that maintain  a UK address to avail of these benefits, Yes it is wrong but who can blame them? as to my own situation, I am an Old Age Salaryman of some 4.5 years now so the new pension rates and qualifications do not apply, that was my  meaning of they can't change things for me now,. Talking to a good Friend only Yesterday he was saying to me he felt he would not get a pension in 9/10 years I hope you are right and he has little to fear there will be nothing for him. It is unfortunate (but fortunate for us older people) that they seem to want always to move the Goalposts But it is what it is  Reading a page the other day I see we can't even get to see a Doctor or a Hospital other than an Emergency ( we have to Pay) this is another one of those benefits that we would have to sort out on our Return. I have no desire to return but just as others maybe, get a little more out that I have paid in for. I have no idea what implications it may have if I did acquire a UK address as that would be a change to my Circumstances and would not like to interfere with somethings that is going well at this time.

 It will go round and round in circles I am sure 

[Snowy79]

The biggest change recently in the UK was to increase women's retirement ages to the same as that of men. It's came as a serious shock to some women who have found they need to work an additional 5 years before drawing it down. They have also released a report highlighting that by 2040 pension age could be over 70. They're obviously hoping most die before withdrawing it. 

[Jack Peterson]

1 minute ago, Snowy79 said:

They have also released a report highlighting that by 2040 pension age could be over 70. They're obviously hoping most die before withdrawing it.

 As I said, Moving the Goalposts

[Gary D]

When they introduced the state pension back in the 1909 to people over 70 they didn't expect many take-ups as most people died before then or not much after. In 1925 the age was dropped to 65 and it became more what we are familier with, 1940 saw the 60-65 split. Basically the old age pension was just a prop to see you over the last few year between retirement and death. It is only in recent years with the rapid improvements in life expectancy that retirement has become a lifestyle and an expectation that you with see 25-30 more years. So yes you are expected to die shortly after retirement.

[softail]

I think that the bottom line is that we need to cover our own ass. I have an “oh crap” fund that I can fall back on if either of my pensions were to fail. Nothing in this world is totally guaranteed, people in high places could care less about the masses, thus we need to have a fallback plan just in case.

[stevewool]

I will soon retire well before my pension kicks in, so i have to fund our life with savings and rental income from our house.

6 and a bit years of budgeting and making do .

I have i planned it right for our dreams i am sure , plus remember i have to plan for my younger wife who may live longer then me, or should i say sell your handbags to fund your life once i have gone.