Martin Lewis has issued a stark warning to pension savers, urging them to track down old retirement pots that could be worth tens of thousands of pounds. Speaking on his BBC podcast, the money-saving expert explained that anyone who has changed jobs multiple times may have several forgotten pensions, and failing to keep tabs on them could mean losing out on significant sums.
The risk of multiple jobs and lost pensions
Lewis highlighted how easy it is to lose the paper trail when moving from employer to employer. Responding to a listener's question about whether switching roles frequently leads to multiple pension pots, he said: "If you've had lots of different jobs, you will have lots of different pensions. You absolutely do need to keep track of it."
He shared examples of people who rediscovered substantial fortunes using tracing services. "I often get messages from people who say, 'I can't believe it. I had a pension when I was 21. I worked there for a couple of years. I'd forgotten about it. I'm in my 50s or 60s now. I heard you talk about Gretel or the Pension Tracing Service, and they've just told me there's £120,000.' It can be real money," Lewis said.
How to find lost pensions
For those who have lost their old pension paperwork, the money is not gone forever. Lewis recommended two free tools: the Government's Pension Tracing Service and the fintech firm Gretel. The Pension Tracing Service helps find contact details of pension providers if you know the company you worked for. Gretel, meanwhile, can track pensions even without that information. "You can use the Government Pension Tracing Service if you know the company you worked for. And while it doesn't cover as many different pension schemes, you can use the free fintech firm, Gretel, which can also track old pensions for you if you haven't kept track of them," Lewis explained.
Should you consolidate your pensions?
Once all scattered pensions are located, savers may consider consolidating them into a single pot. Lewis advised caution: "You can consolidate. Consolidating is often a good idea, but there are pros and cons, and I would always suggest if you don't know what you're doing with pensions, you get in touch with Pension Wise, which is a sort of a semi-governmental agency to give you free guidance on pensions." He added that consolidating works well for many but has drawbacks for some, and one-on-one guidance from Pension Wise is essential to determine the best course of action.
