revtothelimit - motorbike forum

To get back to pensions if I dare....I'd be having a very careful look at where your money is invested and if you have any control over it then consider it carefully. Predicting doom is easy because at some point there are bound to be drops/dips, but it really isn't a stretch to see a big black cloud looming.
I think I've already said everyone I know has withdrawn a lot or all of their money from the markets, 4-5% in fixed bonds isn't sexy but it's a lot safer than a crash if some lunatic does something silly on the global stage.

Yorick wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 11:42 am I don't do titles or descriptions or whatever.

Just a daft lad from Bradford who worked hard to get what he wanted.
This started in 1999 when I visited here to see my dad just after my wife died.
I decided then to retire here.

Don't need judging.

Duly noted. We'll put it to the panel and get back to you with our decision.

IccyV2 wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 6:53 am I feel a bit like a policeman, I've got a mate on the squad and he said when you deal with the dregs of society for 10hrs a day six days a week you tend to end up being a bit of a twat and treat everyone with a bit of condescension.

Another mate is retired from plod and he said it took him about 5yrs to stop treating everyone like they were about to commit a crime.
Over a pint once we both agreed that we wished we could be less of a dickhead sometimes but we grow into it.

On a tangent from that-
Old man was a detective. He said any bloke who stayed in CID too long would become a criminal. Any bloke who was immune to that effect was unlikely to be good at being a detective.

In some sectors being a criminal or non criminal is a very fine margin.

JackyJoll wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 2:18 pm

IccyV2 wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 6:53 am I feel a bit like a policeman, I've got a mate on the squad and he said when you deal with the dregs of society for 10hrs a day six days a week you tend to end up being a bit of a twat and treat everyone with a bit of condescension.

Another mate is retired from plod and he said it took him about 5yrs to stop treating everyone like they were about to commit a crime.
Over a pint once we both agreed that we wished we could be less of a dickhead sometimes but we grow into it.

On a tangent from that-
Old man was a detective. He said any bloke who stayed in CID too long would become a criminal. Any bloke who was immune to that effect was unlikely to be good at being a detective.

eg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Midl ... rime_Squad

IccyV2 wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 11:31 am

MyLittleStudPony wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 9:11 am
Bigger than The Big Four!


Or a deluded narcissist!

I'd take knobhead, arrogant prick, or something similar but I don't fit the description of a narcissist, married 30yrs, successful relationships and career, over a decade in current role and harmonious family life and friendships.

Narcissists often have delusions of grandeur and even if they went to a "proper university", they'll usually leave a trail of failed relationships and failed ventures/jobs, ending up probably sponging off someone else more successful whilst bouncing from one temporary crap job to another.
Know anyone like that?

I'm just breaking your balls!

And I'm not claiming to be anything other than a rough old scrimper.

MyLittleStudPony wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 12:31 am I'm just breaking your balls!

And I'm not claiming to be anything other than a rough old scrimper.

I genuinely hope you never stop doing it, you've been a worthy adversary, if there was a heart emoji I'd post it

I aspire to be a rough old scrimper
None of us are anything, that's why I always found it so amusing to wind people up, it used to be fun, some of the characters on the forums could play the game very well but now it's all bitterness and "I'll phone your boss and get you fired".

The further I've ploughed into the echelons of people who by conventional measures appear to be successful, the more I realised they're bigger chancers than I am, which does beg the question that if that's true (and it is) then why have some people not figured it out and bought a fleet of jet-skis.

Horse wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 4:50 pm

JackyJoll wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 2:18 pm

IccyV2 wrote: Thu Apr 09, 2026 6:53 am I feel a bit like a policeman, I've got a mate on the squad and he said when you deal with the dregs of society for 10hrs a day six days a week you tend to end up being a bit of a twat and treat everyone with a bit of condescension.

Another mate is retired from plod and he said it took him about 5yrs to stop treating everyone like they were about to commit a crime.
Over a pint once we both agreed that we wished we could be less of a dickhead sometimes but we grow into it.

On a tangent from that-
Old man was a detective. He said any bloke who stayed in CID too long would become a criminal. Any bloke who was immune to that effect was unlikely to be good at being a detective.

eg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Midl ... rime_Squad

This needs it's own thread and I'm not sure how it would go, but Operation Tiberius makes a good read.

Meanwhile, anyone that wants a long-ish read on things that might impact their savings/pension pot might be interested in this investment outlook. (Bearing in mind that Fidelity are fund managers and not likely to suggest keeping your lolly under the mattress or getting a few diamonds added to your teeth ).

As ever it all depends on where you are in the life cycle - years away from retirement, close to it or retired as to what your plan might be.

I don't think it mentions the 'AI bubble' - that seems to be yesterday's worry.


https://www.fidelity.co.uk/media/pi/pdf ... 2-2026.pdf

My pension is totally out of my control, it's with Scottish Widows, so i just let it run with their config and settings.

It'd dropped by the best part of £20k in the past few weeks, but yesterday was up around it's best again after 2-3 increases in the last 3-4 days. I can't pull it out yet as i'm not 55, so it's going to sit with them still for a few more months until i have some decisions to make over the course of the next year. But this week at least, it's not all doom and gloom.

Mines holding it's own atm. I've already had all the tax free out, so it's all taxable now. I draw a minimal amount so don't pay much tax. I'll keep it invested and hope for the best.

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 8:47 am My pension is totally out of my control, it's with Scottish Widows, so i just let it run with their config and settings.

It'd dropped by the best part of £20k in the past few weeks, but yesterday was up around it's best again after 2-3 increases in the last 3-4 days. I can't pull it out yet as i'm not 55, so it's going to sit with them still for a few more months until i have some decisions to make over the course of the next year. But this week at least, it's not all doom and gloom.

If and when you hit 55, it's not a done deal you'll take it anyway. And even if you take 25% tax-free, that still leaves you with a chunk that you need to keep invested over the decades to keep you living the lifestyle.
People need to get out of the mindset that come a significant pension date that they should move all their investments into a Post Office Savings Account.

gremlin wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 9:22 am

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 8:47 am My pension is totally out of my control, it's with Scottish Widows, so i just let it run with their config and settings.

It'd dropped by the best part of £20k in the past few weeks, but yesterday was up around it's best again after 2-3 increases in the last 3-4 days. I can't pull it out yet as i'm not 55, so it's going to sit with them still for a few more months until i have some decisions to make over the course of the next year. But this week at least, it's not all doom and gloom.

If and when you hit 55, it's not a done deal you'll take it anyway. And even if you take 25% tax-free, that still leaves you with a chunk that you need to keep invested over the decades to keep you living the lifestyle.
People need to get out of the mindset that come a significant pension date that they should move all their investments into a Post Office Savings Account.

Oh absolutely yes. I won't be taking all of the 25% for sure, i'll be taking 10-15% and the remainder will be done in a drawdown depending on what i do next in the world once the current job ends. I'm hoping to not spend a lot, but i expect to unless i get really lucky in terms of a job/role.

gremlin wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 9:22 am

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 8:47 am My pension is totally out of my control, it's with Scottish Widows, so i just let it run with their config and settings.

It'd dropped by the best part of £20k in the past few weeks, but yesterday was up around it's best again after 2-3 increases in the last 3-4 days. I can't pull it out yet as i'm not 55, so it's going to sit with them still for a few more months until i have some decisions to make over the course of the next year. But this week at least, it's not all doom and gloom.

If and when you hit 55, it's not a done deal you'll take it anyway. And even if you take 25% tax-free, that still leaves you with a chunk that you need to keep invested over the decades to keep you living the lifestyle.
People need to get out of the mindset that come a significant pension date that they should move all their investments into a Post Office Savings Account.

Individuals need individual approaches.

eg if you are in the nice position where your pension puts you close to or over the higher tax level, tax free savings vehicles look pretty good*. (They look pretty good even when you're working ).

OTOH if you're umpteen years off you can take a longer view.

There's no real 'one size fits all' approach so, as you say, people need to put a bit of thought into it at some point - the earlier the better!

* Even allowing for inflation.

SO here's a question then.

Lets assume i can take £200k tax free. Then lets assume i spend £50k of that on clearing debts, a vehicle and sorting house move out.

So assuming i've got £150k sitting there as a tax free figure. But then also assuming i'd want to take £37k over the next 4 years as 'salary'. How would someone go about that ?

I assume i could leave the £150k in the pension and drawdown that as tax free only ? Which would mean that the £100k in year 2 would still be gaining interest/capital ?

Obviously the £37k could be a lot less as i may get a job that'll cover some of that, but lets assume for a moment i'm not earning for those 3 years.

My fund has bounced back, before my contribution has gone through, so it will have a nice increase from that as well. Every little helps.

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 9:41 am

I assume i could leave the £150k in the pension and drawdown that as tax free only ? Which would mean that the £100k in year 2 would still be gaining interest/capital ?

Short answer, yes.

Or take the 25% and shove it in a combo of ISAs and Premium Bonds, up to your limits, obvs. This will give tax free savings (I'm not a big fan of PBs, but they serve a purpose).

Or put it in a special income fund with one of the online fund managers.

Depends on your risk appetite and how quickly you might want to access the funds. A good spread of investments isn't a bad idea. As CS said, individual needs will dictate how you should invest.

Plus don't forget to factor in my invoice when drawing down from the lump sum. This advice don't come cheap, Sunshine.

Getting a bit technical here, but the bond market isn't proving to be the usual safe haven it usually is in turbulent times as yields are being hit by longer-term inflationary worries. Not say that won't improve short term, but worth bearing in mind if you're thinking of switch to a more bond-focused fund any time soon.

gremlin wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 10:14 am

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 9:41 am

I assume i could leave the £150k in the pension and drawdown that as tax free only ? Which would mean that the £100k in year 2 would still be gaining interest/capital ?

Short answer, yes.

Or take the 25% and shove it in a combo of ISAs and Premium Bonds, up to your limits, obvs. This will give tax free savings (I'm not a big fan of PBs, but they serve a purpose).

Or put it in a special income fund with one of the online fund managers.

Depends on your risk appetite and how quickly you might want to access the funds. A good spread of investments isn't a bad idea. As CS said, individual needs will dictate how you should invest.

Plus don't forget to factor in my invoice when drawing down from the lump sum. This advice don't come cheap, Sunshine.

Well, once i know my work situation more i will be seeing an IFA, but that's not quite yet. No point going to see one until i have all the scenarios playing out fully.

gremlin wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 10:14 am

weeksy wrote: Fri Apr 10, 2026 9:41 am

I assume i could leave the £150k in the pension and drawdown that as tax free only ? Which would mean that the £100k in year 2 would still be gaining interest/capital ?

Short answer, yes.

Or take the 25% and shove it in a combo of ISAs and Premium Bonds, up to your limits, obvs. This will give tax free savings (I'm not a big fan of PBs, but they serve a purpose).

Or put it in a special income fund with one of the online fund managers.

Depends on your risk appetite and how quickly you might want to access the funds. A good spread of investments isn't a bad idea. As CS said, individual needs will dictate how you should invest.

Plus don't forget to factor in my invoice when drawing down from the lump sum. This advice don't come cheap, Sunshine.

What he said ^

But remember if you leave it in your pension pot it could go down in value.

There are complicated options but I'm a simple bloke and I'd prefer something like a fixed term deposit, you stick your £150k in there and it'll pay you monthly interest at 4-5% for as long as you choose, or a lump sum if you prefer, if you're not working then you'll have all your tax allowances to use, obviously the capital never changes unless you take some out when you renew it.

An ISA and PBs will be tax free but there is no guarantee on the PBs and the ISA limit is peanuts at 4% return, you might as well do it because it's there, but it's going to be a small return.

Or you could find another fund to invest in, but at this stage I think you're looking short term and I'm yet to find a fund manager who will guarantee a return that is any better than you can get in the high street on a deposit, or guarantee limited losses, that's not to say they can't, they just won't guarantee it, so 4-5% will do me as a cast iron return, I can't afford to lose money.