Who needs a boring old annuity now that – from April 2015 – we will have the new pension flexibility? That must be the question many people are asking themselves, especially those heading towards the “magic 55” mark when they can choose where to convert their pension pot into a much wider range of products… […]

The abiding principle of a life insurance policy – to provide financial help to the family of the deceased – has remained intact since the very first policy was issued over 300 years ago. Now, of course, there is a huge choice of different policies – and providers – and that can make it difficult […]

Being able to choose where we spend the last years of our life is something many of us strive for… so how can you give yourself the best chance of achieving that? By Tony Watts OBE. One of the biggest concerns for most people in retirement is whether or not their savings and pensions will […]

LONDON, 3 September, 2014: RetireEasy, which created the UK’s leading financial planning software program for retirees, has appointed Tony Watts OBE as a board director. Mr Watts, who was awarded an OBE earlier this year for his voluntary work on behalf of older people, chairs the South West Forum on Ageing and helps steer the […]

This was the message delivered to journalists by the pensions minister Steve Webb last week and perhaps a signal that the Government are a little worried that within a month of the Election a pensions fiasco could develop in April when customers request to cash-in their pension plans and the pension providers refuse to do […]

Yes it’s General Election year again, writes Tony Watts OBE. And, as we know, Older People are the demographic that can be expected to vote in numbers. So expect the “ante” to be cranked up between here and May. But what ARE the issues that will sway the grey vote? There is often a suspicion […]

New analysis from Age UK has warned of “significant numbers of people running out of money” in retirement. So could the free online retirement planner from RetireEasy.co.uk help many avoid falling into that trap? By Tony Watts OBE, Director of RetireEasy.co.uk.   Research from Age UK (published 10 January) reveals that the long awaited pension […]

Steve Webb became the coalition Government’s pensions minister after winning his seat for the Lib Dems at Thornbury & Yate at the 2010 General Election and since then he has trail-blazed his way through the entire UK pensions system, writes Mark Soper.

Traditionally, our home has represented the asset that we could pass down to our children. It’s probably time to forget that, writes Tony Watts OBE The last few years have seen a sea change in the way we regard our homes. Yes, they have always represented one of the biggest financial achievements we aspired to […]

How can we make use of our biggest asset to make our retirement comfortable and enjoyable? By Tony Watts OBE. It would be nice to think that we will have enough coming in through our pensions to keep us comfortable in retirement. Alternatively, that we will have capital put aside to get by. But, for […]