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Personal and Stakeholder Pensions - UK - March 2008

Published by: Mintel International Group Ltd.

Published: Mar. 1, 2008 - 99 Pages


Table of Contents


ISSUES IN THE MARKET

Key issues

ABBREVIATIONS

MARKET IN BRIEF

New premiums into personal pensions have increased

Figure 1: New individual pension APE premiums, by product type, 2002-07

Many factors have encouraged market growth…

Concerns are mounting over an ageing population

The decline of occupational schemes has boosted the market

Figure 2: Status of private sector occupational pension schemes, 2006

AXA leads the market

Advertising budgets for pensions are relatively small

Figure 3: Advertising expenditure, by financial services category, 2002/03-2006/07

The majority of new business comes through an IFA

Occupational pensions are more commonly held

Many perceive pensions to be ‘complicated’

INTERNAL MARKET AND REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT

Key points

The decline of occupational pension schemes

Basic state pension = basic lifestyle in retirement

S2P replaces SERPS

The impact of A-day…

Figure 4: Pensions lifetime allowance and annual allowance, 2006/07-2010/11

…with more options after retirement

Reform of the UK pensions system

Figure 5: Summary of reccomendations in the Pensions White Paper

The impact of personal accounts on the pensions industry?

Figure 6: Department for Work and Pensions model of the pensionable population, 2004

The Retail Distribution Review

Increasing consumer understanding

What’s all this ‘fair treatment’ business about?

BROADER MARKET ENVIRONMENT

Key points

The UK’s ticking pensioner time bomb

Figure 7: Population growth projections, by age, 2002-12

Changing longevity assumptions

Stockmarket volatility may discourage investment

Figure 8: FTSE 100 Share Index, Jan 2006-Dec 2007

A tough year expected in 2008 will hit pension contributions

Figure 9: Financial priorities over the next 12 months, by order of significance, January 2008

The growing number of ABs is a positive sign for providers…

Figure 10: Population, by socio-economic distribution, 2002-12

…as is the increasing amount of personal disposable income

Figure 11: PDI, consumer expenditure and savings, 2002-12

Macro-economic situation could cloud the picture

COMPETITIVE CONTEXT

Key points

Occupational pension schemes on the decline

Figure 12: Number of private sector occupational pension schemes in the UK, by scheme size, 2002-06

Half of private sector schemes frozen, closed or winding up

Figure 13: Status of private sector occupational pension schemes, 2006

The continued rise of equity release…

Figure 14: Lifetime mortgages newly advanced and balances outstanding, by volume and value, 2002-06

…and the buy-to-let market

Figure 15: Number and value of buy-to-let sales, 1999-2007

ISAs as an alternative to a pension?

Figure 16: ISA deposits, by type of ISA, 2001/02-2006/07

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES IN THE MARKET

MARKET STRENGTHS

Longevity increases the need for (larger) pensions

The appeal of tax-efficient contributions

Increasing flexibility in the market

Personal accounts may raise the profile of personal pensions

MARKET WEAKNESSES

A tightly regulated market limits opportunity for product development

Weakness in the economy forecast for 2008 may discourage investment

Perception that pensions are complicated and reserved for the affluent

Personal accounts are a potentially competing product

MARKET SIZE AND FORECAST

Key points

Individual vs. occupational pension schemes

Figure 17: Total new premiums paid into individual and occupational pensions, 2002-07

A permanent shift in the balance

The gradual decline of individual personal pensions

Figure 18: Total number of policies and regular premiums from individual pensions business in force, by

pension type, 2002-06

Disappointing increase in policies in force

There’s big ones (personal pensions) and small ones (SIPPs)

Figure 19: Total number of individual pensions in force, by pension type, 2006

Doom and gloom for stakeholder pensions?

Figure 20: New individual pension premiums, by product type, 2002-07

SIPPs lead the way

MARKET FORECAST

Figure 21: New APE premiums into individual pensions, by pension type, 2003-12

SIPPs continue to grow, stakeholders to stagnate

Factors used in the forecast

MARKET SHARE

Key points

AXA has climbed to lead the pack in 2006

Figure 22: Ranking of individual pension providers, based on UK gross written premium, 2004-06

COMPANIES AND PRODUCTS

Fund performance varies between providers

Figure 23: Best-performing unit-linked and with-profits pensions, decade to March 2008

AXA (AXA Sun Life)

Standard Life

AVIVA plc (Norwich Union Life)

Lloyds TSB Group (Scottish Widows)

AEGON plc (Scottish Equitable)

BRAND COMMUNICATION AND PROMOTION

Key points

Pensions is a small proportion of total financial services adspend

Figure 24: Advertising expenditure, by financial services category, 2002/03-2006/07

A large proportion of adspend is accounted for by intermediaries

Figure 25: Pensions advertising expenditure, by sub-category, 2003/04-2006/07

The top ten providers account for over half of all pensions adspend

Figure 26: Pensions advertising expenditure, by provider, 2006/07

Press is the medium of choice for advertising pensions

Figure 27: Pensions advertising expenditure, by media type, 2006/07


CHANNELS TO MARKET

Key points

The majority of new business comes through an IFA

Figure 28: New APE premiums into individual pensions, by distribution channel, 2002-07

Individual stakeholder pensions are sold by more tied agents…

Figure 29: New regular premiums into individual pensions, by type of pension and distribution channel, Q1-

Q3 2007

…since stakeholder pensions are more suited to bancassurance

Figure 30: New regular premiums into individual pensions, via bancassurance, and by type of pension,

2005-07

THE CONSUMER: PENSION OWNERSHIP AND CONTRIBUTION LEVELS

Key points

A word on analysis methodology

A quarter of us are making no provision for retirement

Figure 31: Pension ownership, December 2007

SIPPs have become popular

How does all this bode for the industry?

Overview of consumer profiles by pension type held

Figure 32: Pension ownership, by gender, age, and socio-economic-group (excluding respondents that are

already retired), December 2007

Final-salary schemes are reserved for the upper classes

Pension ownership increases with age and income

Figure 33: Pension ownership, by marital status, lifestage, working status, household income and ACORN

category, December 2007

Single people are less likely to have a pension

Pension ownership increases with earnings

Over two fifths pay less than £100 a month into a pension

Figure 34: Monthly pension contributions, December 2007

Insufficient pension contribution levels?

Men tend to contribute more than women

Figure 35: Monthly pension contributions, by gender, age, lifestage, household income and tenure,

December 2007

Higher earners contribute more

Renters may be worth targeting

Personal pension holders are likely to pay in less

Figure 36: Monthly pension contributions, by type of pension, December 2007

THE CONSUMER: ATTITUDES TOWARDS PENSIONS

Key points

Only two fifths of us trust IFAs to give good pensions advice

Figure 37: Attitudes towards different sources of pensions advice, December 2007

Wealthy individuals are more likely to trust IFAs

Figure 38: Attitudes towards different sources of pensions advice, by gender, age, socio-economic group,

marital status, tenure and ACORN category, December 2007

Younger people turn to family, not the professionals…

…but responses raise issues over the NPSS

Pensions associated with a comfortable retirement…

Figure 39: Consumer word associations with pensions, December 2007

…but there are still negatives

Most feel duty-bound when it comes to owning a pension

Figure 40: Consumer attitudes towards pensions, by mindset groups, December 2007

Positives outweigh the negatives

Men are more likely to have reservations

Figure 41: Consumer attitudes towards pensions, by mindset groups, by gender, age, marital status,

lifestage and household income, December 2007

Apathy is a condition of the young mind

The unmarried have fewer reservations

Families hold stronger reservations about pensions

High earners see pensions as a duty-bound obligation

APPENDIX: PENSION OWNERSHIP AND CONTRIBUTION LEVELS

Figure 42: Pension ownership, by gender, age, socio-economic-group, marital status, lifestage, presence of

children, Mintel’s Special Groups, working status, household income, car ownership, detailed lifestage

groups and age/socio-economic group (excluding respondents that are already retired), December 2007

Figure 43: Pension contributions, by gender, age, socio-economic-group, marital status, lifestage, presence

of children, Mintel’s Special Groups, working status, household income, tenure, region, ACORN category,

media usage, supermarket usage, household size, car ownership, detailed lifestage groups, age/socioeconomic

group and terminal education age (excluding respondents that are already retired), December

2007

APPENDIX: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Abstract

The overall market for personal pensions has been growing steadily over the last few years, although pension ownership amongst the adult population in the UK remains relatively low. SIPPs have become increasingly popular over the last few years, whilst stakeholder pensions have failed to achieve the success that many had hoped for. The reform of the UK pensions system is likely to have a major impact on the market, although uncertainty remains over what this might be.

The UK’s ageing population is a particular concern for the government, whilst the long-term growth in personal disposable income bodes well for the market. The collapse and closure of occupational schemes has encouraged many to go the route of individual pensions, and regulatory changes like A-day, the Retail Distribution Review, and the Pensions White Paper have all made their mark on the industry. Consumer perceptions that products are complicated, coupled with a highly apathetic attitude towards retirement planning, are probably the main barriers to greater penetration - although if it were possible to make pensions sexy, someone would probably have done it by now.

This report looks in detail at the personal pensions market, exploring the many factors that influence the market and drive consumer demand. As well as internal and external market factors, regulatory developments are summarised. Competitive products are explored before looking at examples of innovation within the marketplace. A presentation of key company profiles follows alongside an analysis of market shares and distribution channels. This report also contains a dedicated section on branding in which the personality of individual brands as well as the characteristics of the wider industry is presented.

Key issues:
  • Pensions are perceived by most as being complicated… and boring.
  • Most consumers have an apathetic attitude towards pensions.
  • An ageing population is forcing the government to encourage retirement self-provision.
  • Most new business comes in through IFAs, but access to such advice is restricted.
  • Alternatives to pension ownership, particularly buy-to-let, are becoming popular.



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