Have you got a pension tucked away that you’ve forgotten about? Here’s how to find out…

A couple of years ago, a survey came out with an interesting stat: that (on average) we Brits each work for six different employers over a lifetime. It also revealed that (again on average) we down over 32,000 cups of tea and coffee in that time, but that’s another story.

The received wisdom is that this figure is likely to rise in years to come as we all work for longer and changes in technology make the roles we’re currently in redundant.  How many typing pool operatives do you see these days for instance: the beating heart of every large organisation when I began work.

Whether or not you are Mr or Mrs Average, you may well have spent a few years along the way working for someone and perhaps didn’t realise that your pay was being docked and saved into a company pension. If so, you could be owed a useful sum – now and longer term.

And no, don’t despair if the company you worked for no longer exists. It may well have been taken over and the pension transferred or protected. Even if it went into liquidation, some rights may still remain.

So how do you set about finding out if you are owed a pension?

The Government runs a very helpful (and surprisingly quick) department within DWP called the Pension Tracing Service. Get in contact by email, telephone or snail mail, give them as much information as you can, including whether you’re looking for a workplace pension or personal pension, and they will let you know you to contact.

It’s an entirely free service and, as they say, nothing ventured… even if it was six months spent stacking shelves between University and your first job you may still have an entitlement.

Go to: https://www.gov.uk/find-lost-pension