Keep Your Retirement on Track: National Pension Tracing Day is Here!

This Sunday, 27 October, marks National Pension Tracing Day—a timely reminder to reconnect with any “lost” pensions you may have. According to the latest report by the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) , there are nearly 3.3 million pension pots—worth a staggering ￡31.1 billion—that have become “lost” or “disconnected” from their owners. With the average disconnected pot holding over ￡9,000 (rising to ￡13,620 for those aged 55-75), this is a vital opportunity to reclaim what’s rightfully yours.

Why Do We Lose Track of Pensions? Life is busy, and it’s easy to lose track of pension pots—especially as people change jobs, often several times in a career. The introduction of automatic enrolment means that millions of people are now automatically saving for retirement, but each new job often means a new pension plan. Over time, some of these plans can slip off the radar, leaving people disconnected from a piece of their future.

Find Your Lost Pensions for Free To help you reconnect with your pensions, the Government offers a free Pension Tracing Service —a quick and cost-effective way to locate any pensions you’ve lost track of. Be cautious, though: you may encounter adverts for paid services, often from consolidators, ranked highly on search engines. These companies typically charge fees for something you can do for free. Consolidating your pensions doesn’t “rescue” lost funds but may add unnecessary costs, as new providers and their agents take a cut in fees.

How to Protect Your Pensions Once You’ve Found Them Once you’ve traced your lost pensions, simply contact each provider to update your details. Notify them of your current address and confirm your identity to keep in touch. Doing this ensures that your pension providers can reach you with updates and helps secure your savings for the future. There’s no need to consolidate to keep them connected; keeping them in touch is what truly matters.

Why Staying Connected Matters Disconnected pensions mean that some may enter retirement with an incomplete financial picture. Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, highlights that the value of staying connected with your pensions goes beyond the money; it’s about maintaining a sense of control over your financial future. With ￡31.1 billion at stake, taking these small steps today can make a big difference tomorrow.

As the planned Pensions Dashboards move closer to reality, we hope to see tools that will make managing multiple pensions easier for everyone. In the meantime, National Pension Tracing Day is here to encourage us all to take charge, reclaim what’s ours, and ensure our hard-earned savings remain part of our financial journey.

Reconnect with your pensions, take advantage of free tools, and ensure every part of your retirement plan works for you.