This Wednesday the deadline for pensions ‘A-Day’ – when the new pensions legislation comes into effect – is only a year away, so Punter Southall Financial Management (PSFM) is urging savers to seek advice before the event.

A-Day will see all the different existing pensions rules swept together into one new system, so PSFM is warning people they could lost out on financial benefits for their pension arrangements if they don’t start planning well in advance.

According to PSFM, the people who should plan with particular care are those with pension funds in excess of the new lifetime allowance (£1.5 million) or whose funds are likely to exceed this limit in the future.

Other groups that could be particularly affected include those with tax-free cash entitlements worth more than a quarter of their fund, and those who could retire now but might defer until after April 2006.

“Once we have passed this watershed of less than one year to go, this should galvanise those who will be most affected into action,” said Richard Meek, senior consultant at PSFM.

Mr Meek added: “If these people don’t prepare properly, they may simply be giving money away to Gordon Brown when they retire, losing valuable lump sum entitlements and being unable to take advantage of the new rules around investment and retirement flexibility.”

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