Many companies offer a pension release or pension unlocking service. They offer to help you take money out of your pension before you turn 55. It’s very important to know that if you release your pension in this way you will likely end up with a very large tax bill and could stand to lose a lot of money. Find out more about pension release companies and some of the scams associated with these.
Pension release is not illegal. However, unless you meet the specific criteria for getting your pension early, you could end up:
paying the pension release company substantial charges
paying 55% tax on the money as it will be seen by HMRC as an unauthorised payment
potentially losing out on a very large percentage of the money you could’ve taken out of your pension in the future.
You should always get regulated financial advice if you’re considering taking your pension early.