This video explains a little more about your retirement options:
Summary
- The earliest you can access your pension is from your 55th birthday, an age set by the government. We will assume you will retire on or around your 65th birthday unless you tell us otherwise
- You can find out more about the retirement options your plan offers in your Retirement Guide, which you can access in the Creative Pension Trust Member Portal
- To select you retirement options, request your Retirement Pack in the Creative Pension Trust Member Portal
Your guide to the information on this page
You may need to speak to us about this
Applies to all our plans
How do I find out about my retirement options?
If you are thinking about reducing the number of hours you work or want to stop working altogether and retire, you will need to think about how best to access your pension savings. Because this is a very important decision, we will begin sending you information about your options once around 15 years before your selected retirement date or your 65th birthday and then every 5 years after that.
How you draw your pension is really up to you. Broadly, there are 3 options to choose from:
- Take it all as a lump sum: you can take all your savings in one go. But, if you want to do this, you will need other sources of income so you don’t run out of money in retirement. You should also be wary of the effect that tax will have on what you will get.
- Buy an annuity: you can use your savings to buy a guaranteed regular income. This offers you peace of mind, but you’ll need to be sure about your decision because you cannot cancel an annuity once it’s been arranged.
- Access your pension periodically, from time to time: you can draw from your pension to top up your income and when you need extra cash whilst the balance of your pension stays invested. There are different ways to access your pension periodically– check the Retirement Guide for your plan in the Creative Pension Trust Member Portal for details on your options.
Your retirement is one of the biggest financial decisions you will make, and we recommend you consider financial guidance or seek professional financial advice so you make the right decisions for your circumstances. You can find out more about guidance and advice on this website.
For detailed information on your retirement choices, download a copy of the Retirement Guide from the Creative Pension Trust Member Portal. When you’re ready to take your pension, you can request your Retirement Pack to select your options.