The choices you make when deciding on the most appropriate income at retirement are decisions that will stay with you for the rest of your life. It is vitally important you make the right decision so professional guidance is always recommended.

Using our annuity calculator is the first step to ensuring that you make the right decision. It will give you an indication of the level of income available from the pension fund which you have accrued.

All personal pension providers should offer you an Open Market Option with your pension fund. This is basically your right to take your pension fund and obtain the best income from all the other pension providers, depending upon who is offering the best annuity rate at the time of your retirement.

The annuity calculator will take into consideration any features that you would like to add to your retirement income and it will also consider any lifestyle or health issues before giving you an indication of the level of income that you can expect.

The first details that you will need to provide are your name and date of birth. In general terms, the older you are the higher the annuity rate. This is purely because as you get older your life expectancy, based on Government statistics, reduces. If you want to provide an income for your Spouse should you predecease them, their name and date of birth are also required.

Should you want us to contact you to provide you with advice regarding your annuity choice, we ask you to provide your contact details. At the very least, we will require your post code, because where you live also influences the annuity rate that you will be offered.

Once your basic details have been added, you move to Step 2 of the process, which asks for more information regarding your pension fund and how you would like your pension income to be structured.

The fund value you have available to purchase your annuity, after any tax free cash has been taken is key. You must always remember that it is possible that your fund could alter from asking for quotes to actually purchasing your annuity. We can advise you on how to minimise any fluctuations.

There are then a number of features which you may wish to add to your pension income. As previously mentioned, you may elect to provide an income for your widow/widower. You may want to guarantee that your pension is paid for a minimum period of time, even if you die prematurely. It is normally possible to guarantee that your pension be paid for either 5 or 10 years.

The final feature which you may wish to include is a pension which increases every year. If you thought that you were to live for a long time into retirement and you wanted your retirement income to keep pace with inflation, you could opt to have annual increases.

The important point for consideration when deciding on all these options, is that the initial pension you receive will decrease for every extra benefit which you add.

Please call us for any advice on annuities on 0800 848 8250.