Pension Wise
Pension Wise is a free and impartial service set up by government in 2015 offering guidance for people regarding pension freedoms introduced in the 2014 United Kingdom budget. Under these changes those with a defined contribution pension scheme will no longer be forced to buy an annuity. Instead they will be allowed to take as much or as little from their pension pot as they wish to invest or spend themselves. The Independent has described this change as the biggest change to pensions in nearly a century. The cost of establishing and supporting the service in its first  year is £35 million. The Pension Wise website has been criticised by the Work and Pensions Select Committee as has the low take up of Pension Wise appointments The Equity Release Council have recommended that Pension Wise be extended to allow advice on equity release. Responsibility for the service was initially under HM Treasury but moved to the Department for Work and Pensions in March 2016. Pension Wise guidance is delivered via telephone and face to face appointments or online. The service is available to people aged 50 years and over with a Defined Contribution pension to help them  understand what they can do with their pension pot(s). Telephone appointments are provided through The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) and face to face appointments through Citizens Advice. Appointments are delivered by over 150 guidance specialists whose training has been accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) or the Pensions Management Institute (PMI). Pension Wise does not give specific product or provider recommendations. It also stops short of providing advice, which must still be delivered by a regulated financial adviser. To date there have been more than 7.5 million visits to the Pension Wise website and more than 250,000 Pension Wise  appointments. According to the Financial Conduct Authority, 46% of consumers who took part in their consumer survey had received guidance from Pension Wise.