Commenting on the Pensions Trends survey update from the Office of National Statistics, Jane Beverley, Head of Research at Punter Southall, said:
"The Office for National Statistics has published an update to their Pension Trends survey, which shows that in 2008 employers were paying half the level of special contributions to the pension schemes they sponsor compared to 2006. At the same time schemes' total assets fell by around 15% in early 2008. This is only half of the story though: with equity markets tumbling during 2008 and early 2009 and the impacts of the recession continuing to be felt, many schemes face a bleak outlook for years to come as they face significant deficits and employers who are unable to afford to repay them in the short to medium term. We would expect next year's survey results to continue to paint a gloomy picture as recent improvements will take a while to feed into schemes' recovery plans.
These statistics illustrate the harsh reality for many trustees of schemes, which have been suffering from increasing deficits just at the time when employers are least able to make additional contributions to meet those deficits. It is perhaps not surprising that many trustees and employers are looking for ways to reduce the risks posed by volatile asset values through de-risking strategies such as buy-in or liability hedging."
Ends
For further information or to speak with Jane Beverley, please contact:
Penrose Financial
Andre Flemmings
0207 786 4811
Trustee training - Pension scheme investment (September 2010)
