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Investing your pension

As a part of your application we’ll ask you to choose how you want your pension invested. Scottish Widows have taken the hassle out of choosing individual funds when you take out your pension and designed investment choices to suit you.

If you’re not sure of your risk appetite or how to take your pension at retirement, you can choose the default option. This is a balanced Governed Investment Strategy (GIS) that targets flexible access at retirement. This could suit a typical customer and reflects what we most commonly see in terms of risk appetite and retirement options. The default strategy is not personalised to you, and it may not meet your needs at retirement, so please consider this when making a decision about your investment options.

If you’re unsure what to choose, you can always seek financial advice. There will be a charge for this service.
 

What are my options?

See how each investment choice could potentially perform and whether it is right for you:

Investment choice

How your pension pot could perform

Is this the right choice for you?

Investment choice

Cautious

You’re cautious with your investments and don’t feel comfortable taking much risk with your money.

How your pension pot could perform

  • You can expect your pension pot to have some ups and downs in value. While there’s potential for some growth, there’s also potential for some losses.

Is this the right choice for you?

  • If your retirement age is drawing closer your focus may shift from growing your money to protecting it.
  • A major stock market fall could have an impact on your retirement income if you do not have time to potentially recover your losses.

Investment choice

Balanced

You’re a balanced investor and feel comfortable taking some risk with your money for, potentially, more reward.

How your pension pot could perform

  • You can expect your pension pot to go up and down in value. While there’s potential for growth, there’s also the potential for losses.

Is this the right choice for you?

  • While you won’t relish stock market falls if you’re close to retirement by keeping your money invested, this gives you the chance to recover your losses.

Investment choice

Adventurous

You’re an adventurous investor and feel comfortable taking high risk with your money for, potentially high rewards.

How your pension pot could perform

  • You can expect your pension pot to have a lot of sharp ups and downs in value. While there’s potential for high growth, there’s also potential for significant losses.

Is this the right choice for you?

  • If you’re planning to retire in 25 years time, you’re investing for the long term and can withstand short-term falls in the value of your pension pot.
  • A longer time frame gives your investment more time to recover if it falls in value.

Default option

Our default investment strategy is a balanced Governed Investment Strategy (GIS) that targets flexible access at retirement.
 

How your pension is invested?

Depending on how you feel about the risk you want to take, they will invest your pension in one of their Governed Investment Strategies.

Your questions answered

  • Quite simply each strategy (Cautious, Balanced and Adventurous) is a blend of funds known as Pension Portfolios. They suit your attitude to risk and the length of time you will be invested. With GIS, your pension pot is gradually moved into lower risk investments as you get closer to retirement.

    Get more details about how your money is invested, download the guide (PDF, 1.2MB).

  • Your money will be invested in bonds and shares (known as 'equities'). These are shares within the UK, emerging markets and developed markets overseas.

    Shares are considered riskier investments than bonds, so a portfolio investing in a large percentage of shares will carry more risk than one investing in a large percentage of bonds.

    Get more details about how your money is invested, download the guide (PDF, 1.2MB).

  • Quite simply a Portfolio is a range of assets that are managed as a group or as one. Our Pension Portfolio’s are a way to invest in more than one type of investment. The technical name for them is a ‘multi-asset fund’.

    Each portfolio invests in a different mix of investment types to aim for a different level of return. This is aligned to the level of risk you choose to take. Cautious, Balanced or Adventurous.

    Get more details about how your money is invested, download the guide (PDF, 1.2MB).

Looking for more detail?

Looking for more detail?

Don’t forget investments can go down as well as up, so if you want more information on how your money is invested then please read the guide below.

If you don’t feel comfortable making an investment choice yourself, you can speak to Scottish Widows or a financial adviser, or you can speak to an Independent Financial Adviser. Bear in mind Financial Advisers will charge for the Advice they give.

Taking your pension

Taking your pension

Now that you've decided that transferring is right for you and learnt about how your pension can be invested, you now need to understand the options for when you retire. This will help you complete the application.

Find out more

Ready to transfer?

Ready to transfer?

If you’ve already reviewed and decided transferring is right for you, your investment and retirement options you can start the application. You’ll need the following:

  • Your National Insurance number
  • Your existing pension providers name
  • The policy numbers of each pension you want to transfer
  • The Scheme name if it's a workplace pension
  • A recent transfer value for each pension
Apply to transfer my pension

Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland plc. Registered in Scotland No. SC327000. Registered Office: The Mound, Edinburgh EH1 1YZ. Bank of Scotland plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 169628.

Eligible investments with us are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). For further information about the compensation provided by the FSCS, refer to the FSCS website at www.fscs.org.uk/. You can also visit our Financial Services Compensation Scheme page for more details.

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