‘I withdrew £138k from my pension in a pre-Budget panic – now my provider won’t let me put it back’

27 comments

1. Maybe she shouldn’t have put so much faith in right wing rags that spent the month before the budget going unchecked and making up countless stories about things that never came to fruition. Completely her own fault for falling for it.

2. Paper that was scaremongering about the budget complains that scaremongering made somebody do something.

3. > The 56-year-old had read that Labour was considering cutting the tax-free lump sum

   > …

   > It is a decision she has come to regret

   This is horrifyingly brazen from the Telegraph. They say that “she had read” this content which misled her and they link to their own content. They’re lying to their readers and then laughing at them for being lied to.

   “We published a load of scaremongering nonsense. Look at this stupid fucking idiot who believed what she read in our newspaper. It ruined her life. But look on the bright side, now we can milk her for even more content. I wonder if we can get a quote from her blaming Labour or immigrants, that would be even better!”

4. This is stupid.

   She took money out and didn’t consult her pension providers beforehand if she could choose to put it back. She just thought she could because a website said so.

   She also only wants to put the money back because she thought the new government would make tax changes that they turned out to have not done. She took a gamble and lost.

5. On the other hand, a lot of people crystallised gains just before the budget at the lower rate and they seem quite smart now. My intuition says that, on balance, it’s foolish to make rash, speculative decisions about finances, even if it does occasionally pay off.

6. Just when she’d finished off the last of the loo rolls she bought in lockdown.

7. She’ll have to invest it. 20k in an ISA this year and every subsequent year after paying CGT.

   Not all that bad if she does this.

8. I work in finance and it was always extremely obvious that they were never going to just remove tax free cash on day of budget. Overlooking the laws that’d need changing, the backlash and the unfairness it would create for people who’ve planned on basis of getting it, providers would struggle to act immediately.

   Never ever make financial decisions based on conjecture! Especially if it’s come from express or telegraph! You’d think the generation who told us not to believe everything you read on internet, would know better

9. Baby, your money belongs to pension fund managers. Don’t dare to upset them by sacking their money.

   The Torygraph: You were warned. Don’t dare to upset them. We sleep together.

10. Why should people take responsibility for their actions? They just do their actions. It’s not like they spend hours and hours thinking about them. 

11. In the words of a Sergeant Major, “Oh dear, how sad, never mind.”

12. I don’t feel sorry for gen x at all. Enjoy some adversity!

13. Omg. Some people would love to have £100k in their personal pension for retirement. They had over 500k saved and now 25% is in a bank account. Boo hoo. Bigger problems than that in the world.

14. I fail to see the point of this, she made an enormous financial decision based on nothing other than a headline and then thought that somehow she’d be able to reverse it? That’s her own stupid fault, never mind the fact that she’s now appearing in the very paper that scared her with the BS in the first place.

15. Wait, did this person take that sum of money just because she read a scaremongering headline?

    No financial advice? Didn’t even read one of the many info sheets the pension provider would have supplied her with when she requested her tax free cash, which amongst other things would have said this is not reversible and you should seek financial advice before proceeding?

    And now she’s crying to the newspaper because the pension company is not breaking regulation and letting her reverse the transaction?

16. fuckin hell i wish i had 138k somewhere that i could withdraw it

17. “i made a stupid decision and i can’t undo it now” compoface

18. 138k could easily be stuck into some US funds and generate alot more. Even with some taxes to pay.

    Hopefully someone just informs her of a few things to spread risk and tbh she’d earn way more than her pension pot would ever do.

19. Perhaps she’ll learn to be more careful with what she reads and believes?

20. She looks as though she can afford it anyway. lolz

    What has changed? She got the money tax free, has totally messed up her future pension contributions, ?

    Why didn’t she consult a financial planner? Think she can only contribute 6k? now she has accessed her pension.

    I would be suprised if her pension company wouldn’t have warned her.

    All on her!

21. She took a calculated risk, but just took the wrong option. Oh well, it happens. Not sure why she thought she would have an automatic “undo” though.

22. Over £500k in her pension pot and she is still complaining.

23. Anyone who makes significant, life-changing decisions based on what they read in newspapers deserves everything they get. Independent financial advisors exist for a reason. Common sense exists for a reason. If you’re not going to use either then you shouldn’t be fucking with things you don’t understand.

24. Only way to improve this story is if she is being interviewed on Rip Off Britain because she’s been scammed out of it. Moron.

25. I wish I had £138K to take out of my pension. Stupid is as Stupid does.

26. I know a few folks who did this through family and friends. They never stopped to think, the budget changes don’t become law the second reeves leaves parliament or reads them out. Still gotta be debated and approved then passed through lords and stuff. Whole rigmarole to it and that’s if it’s an easy change. Scrapping the tax free would likely incur resistance so there was zero need for people to rush and remove all their money the day before the budget. Serves them right as people say for getting worked up by papers looking to sell a story and instal fear

27. 1. She used to work in the city. She should have known better.

    2. What was she going to do with the £138,000 anyway? She can still do that.

    3. Her pension was worth over half a million. That’s more than probably 95% of the population have.

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