1. Ones lifestyle doesn’t require a much funds when they retire,
2. When someone reaches NRA, several other means of income comes to play like inheritance, notmally from more than one source
3. There is a state pension and with a baby boom at the moment, there will be high contributions made to Social Welfare in 20 to 40 years.
4. There is some PAYE relief paying into a pension but there is not PRSI or USC levy relief and you have to pay PRSI and USC again when you draw down your Personal Pension

I say the above with no guarantee of course.

These are the reasons why I do not pay into a pension. My savings and the state pension will be more than enough when I retire.

Although starting earlier can have a dramatic effect on the final pension pot.

Kieron you’re wrong on so many levels that it’s sad. The reality of your personal situation will hit you when it’s too late to do anything about it. Unfortunately there are many people who think like you and then in older age when the body starts to crumble you will expect everyone else around you to fund your costs when you discover how wrong you were.
In many cases employers pay matching funds and sometimes more than that into the Pension investments of their employees and you are encouraging people by your assertions or views to walk away from what is free money. Additionally the tax relief on your investments nearly doubles the money you put away every month and you prefer savings that generally pay interest rates that fall below the inflation rate for the forty years of your working life. So even if your pension investment didn’t grow over a lifetime of working which is a ridiculous assumption you’d be miles ahead of simple saving.
There are many more arguments to show how wrong you are and I hope your assertions haven’t negatively influenced others to copy you.

A fair general point for sure.
But with pensions, to use a hackneyed cliche, this is a ticking timebomb with the country’s demographics and the brutal investment returns over the last several years.

precisely. Who has the extra money to pay a pension? We are all scraping the bottom of the barrel trying to make ends meet.

I don’t see the link between job security and providing for a pension.
People expect to retire some day so whether or not you keep changing jobs it makes sense if you have any capacity for it to provide for a pension.

Pensions today are fully portable and can be taken from one job to another. Not planning for retirement is both foolish and socially unacceptable because it is a form of future economic blackmail on the wider community. For example why should I have to contribute to someone’s else’s services in old age if I have provided for my own. Those that don’t fund a future pension when they have the economic means aren’t just making a foolish decision but instead they’re deciding to spend that money today and have others provide for them later. That’s socially unacceptable and leads to my belief that Pensions should be compulsory for all employees and deducted at source. These funds can be invested in your own or a State fund.

@Mick – I know that pensions can be portable and taken to your next job. What I am saying is that because fewer young people are being offered permanent contracts, they don’t know if they will keep their job when the contract expires or if they will get another job straight away afterwards. So they may not be able to afford a pension.

I would hope to retire someday, but I don’t expect it. People are healthier and fitter now than ever before (aside from the obesity problems)….so it is going to be expected they will work until they are older than is the norm now. I work for myself, so I don’t have the luxury of thinking about retirement at the moment. As it stands, I fully expect to die while still working. It’ll be great if it doesn’t work out like that though!

I’ve never put much thought into getting a pension started though, I’d much rather pay for my health insurance at the minute to be honest. It is something for me to consider, maybe in another 5 years or so.

But bear in mind the tax relief available on putting it into a pension scheme now.

@ Gagsy 99

Yes the “tax relief” that isn’t. You don’t get PRSI or USC relief when you pay in. THEN the government take the pension levy each year from your fund. THEN the government apply income tax PLUS PRSI and USC AGAIN to your pension income. That’s TRIPLE taxation!

What about the large tax free lump sum?

Not surprised at your views Tom and they are out there for everyone to understand your thinking on other subjects. But do read all of the contributions as you might realise how foolish you sound . What bothers me in this area is the likelihood of dependant spouses having to suffer from such ignorance in future years.

so mick explain to me and everyone here where a person earning the minimum wage who if he or she is one of the so called patriots that pay every charge and tax going, put food on the table, fuel etc can afford a pension exactly???

Chris, that’s the problem. It’s going to be compulsory to pay into a pension in the future. Low wages or not all workers will have to pay. If you don’t/can’t you will be at the mercy of the state by means testing at retirement. Anyone with any sort of assets including a home at retirement won’t get any help from the state until they are penniless. It’s a catch 22. A scheme similar to the Kiwi Saver might help and it’s much more flexible in terms of access at important stages in life.

But KingBen how can people on low wages spare money for a pension? They can barely cover their bills as it is never mind when they retire.

True , all sounds great , and You are quite right that there are tax reliefs “currently” , with government plans to reduce dramatically , you are also correct that you can choose to ‘self invest ‘ which must come with the health warnings of course that you can loose your money , be careful , the managed funds performances have been pretty lousy , a quick look at almost every irish fund have losses on the 5 year averages some 4-5% per year. The article was about a survey commissioned by the industry which I presume is to try sell the idea to young people that they need to plan for retirement ( a good idea of course ) but my point is that the same industry has a pretty lousy track record , in particular that they invested so much money into Irish property at a time when these fund managers were getting very well paid to ” manage” the investments and did not spread the risk and took heavy losses, consequently they didnt do a very good job at making the case for investing in pensions for young or old who are now faced with the much more demanding challenges of trying to afford getting a place to live , rear families etc. I suspect that because it’s a tough sell they have reverted to commissioning polls and releasing the findings to generate interest in their products. If you can afford a private pension do indeed get good advice and pay attention to what they are doing with your money.

Not all funds are stocks and shares. You can choose cash funds and other low risk funds at any time. When you are young stocks and shares make sense. 10 years before you retire you need to move from any risk funds to low risk. It’s all a game. Don’t just start a pension and expect fund managers to know when you want to move into low risk. It’s your money so take control and move your money when it suits you. Markets go up and down. Move out of risk when they are up to secure the value built up and buy when the markets are low. Don’t rely on the fund managers to move it for you.

I suggest you understand what you are calling a scam before you do so. The main reason for high fees is unscrupulous brokers not explaining commissions etc. The UK have or will be banning commission. Therefore you will find out the real cost when you have to pay it up front.

Catherine I think she is mad to pay this amount. I respect what she is trying to achieve but thats way too much. It depends I suppose how much wages she gets. Most people on low pay could never pay this.

She most likely has been badly advised. Shock surprise!
At her age she should probably be investing into a savings plan with she can access easily if needed.

Well Tom lets start with the facts…you stated that you don’t pay into a pension for what appeared to be political reasons associated with the Troika and the Government and Bankers. Now you’re giving a different reason…which is it Tom….the maybe I can give you a response but in reality you dont seem to give a “flying f…..” isnt that true.