The pensions dashboard has been touted as a game-changer for how you manage your pensions. The scheme promises to bring all your various pension pots together into one place, allowing you to see exactly how much you have in each, making it easier to plan for retirement.
The dashboard programme was launched to address the issue of small pots. You may have accumulated a number of defined contribution pension pots over your working life, but how many are you aware of? Do you have all the paperwork needed to access them? That’s the issue the dashboard programme is trying to solve.
Research from the investment platform Interactive Investor shows pension savers have an average of 2.4 pots, and 10% of savers don’t know how many pension pots they have.
Here’s what you need to know about the pensions dashboard.
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What is included in the pensions dashboard?
The pensions dashboard is a digital service that will allow savers to see their pension information in one place, including information on the state pension.
You will be able to search the records of all pension schemes to confirm whether or not you are a member. It will then allow you access to manage the pot. Not only will this help you reconnect with any pension pots you may have forgotten about, but it offers the opportunity to better understand the value of your pension, meaning you will be better placed to make effective decisions about managing your money in later life.
The pensions dashboard programme is being developed by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) and it will be hosted on the MoneyHelper website. Other private organisations will also be able to develop their own versions too.
When will it launch?
The programme has been repeatedly delayed by technical problems and disagreements on how it should be run.
The latest delay means the deadline for pension schemes to connect to the digital architecture will now be 31 October 2026. Schemes were due to connect in August this year, with the scheme going live for the public in 2024, but these milestones have been scrapped.
Why do we need a pensions dashboard?
Around £26.6 billion is sitting in missing pots, according to the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI), and simplifying the process of people accessing their pots could be a “game-changer” for savers, according to Tom Selby, head of retirement policy at the investment platform AJ Bell.
“Pensions dashboards have the potential to make life much easier for people trying to locate and ultimately combine retirement pots built up over the course of their working lives,” he adds.
But beyond giving you better access to your nest eggs, it is hoped the programme will boost engagement within the pensions space.
According to My Pension Expert research, just 38% of UK workers actually know how much is saved in their pension, while even fewer (33%) have a financial plan in place for retirement.
As such, it is up to the government to “ensure consumers have the right tools to help them achieve the financially secure retirement they deserve,” says Lily Megson, policy director at My Pension Expert.
Will it be regulated?
Under current proposals, the pensions dashboard ecosystem will be made up of multiple dashboards developed by different organisations. These organisations will need to prove they have the expertise and technical know-how before becoming a Qualifying Pensions Dashboard Service (QPDS)
The Pensions Dashboards Programme is responsible for creating the digital architecture that will enable all other dashboards to work and QPDS will still need authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Together, MaPS and the FCA will set the rules on how dashboards must operate and enforce them. MaPS will set the standards operators are expected to maintain, and will notify the FCA if anyone is caught falling short. The FCA can then use its powers to de-authorise the provider.
Why is the dashboard delayed?
Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, says: “Seven years have passed since the government first made a commitment to introducing a dashboard, so it’s hugely disappointing to hear that the date by which all schemes will be connected will be delayed by a further 12 months.
“With billions of pounds lost or dormant in unlocated pensions, the need for dashboards is stronger than ever. That’s why providers who are already in a position to comply should not wait to do so.
“The DWP must be ready to oversee compliance and to step in robustly should some firms fall below the required standards,” she adds.
But Claire Trott, divisional director for retirement and holistic planning at St. James’s Place, says the ongoing delays will result in a better product for consumers. She says it “would be worse to launch something that doesn’t provide any benefit, or only part of what is intended, [as] this could mean that it fails to get engagement by those who most need this resource.”
