There's already been a lot of press coverage relating to the budget and the potential effects on the annuity market in particular but I don't think it will do any harm just to cover the main features & changes again here. 

• Tax Changes
• Savings
• Pensions 

I've provided just a quick summary here of the changes announced by the Chancellor last month. 

Should you wish to discuss further anything mentioned above, please don't hesitate in contacting your Financial Adviser here at Firth & Scott Financial Services Ltd.

Article written by Steve Hopkins FCII 

A recent article in the Daily Mail stated that 4 million savers short-changed by Aviva will get compensation and although a number of savers have already received compensation, some of those affected are elderly and may not live long enough to get their money back.  

When mergers took place between the Norwich Union and CGU, hundreds of technical errors were made resulting in underpayments of policy benefits over a number of years (some totaling £1,000's).  

Apparently Aviva have known about the errors since 2007 and have been working to rectify the situation.  

The FSA (now the FCA) have been monitoring the repayment program, which the insurer started in 2009.  

Initially 186 errors with products had been investigated and as at April of last year this had increased to 358, with some of the mistakes so complicated it's very difficult to evaluate the effect that these errors have had on values of personal pension schemes, life assurance policies and endowment plans.

The Daily Mail estimates that 500,000 policy holders could be affected by these technical mistakes.

Having read this article should you feel you may have been affected please write to:  

Aviva UK Ltd, P O Box 520, Norwich, NR1 3WG - quoting your date of birth, national insurance number and your Aviva policy number/s.

Steve Carson Cert PFS

Long Term Care/Later Life Advice is a huge subject and involves an understanding of the legislative background, the impact on state benefits, the scope (and restrictions) of the various types of care and an understanding of when and how the State can contribute towards the cost of care.  

Planning for Long Term Care, my recent blog post, provides a very broad summary only and I'd urge anybody interested in this area to contact me for an initial explanatory discussion, which will be at my expense.  

Article written by Steve Carson

In the January edition of 'Your Money Matters' one of the areas announced in the Autumn Statement was additional State Pension Top Ups and the Government's announcement that a new scheme will open in October 2015, allowing pensioners to top up their additional state pension before the new single tier state pension comes into force, in April 2016.      

We've now heard that the cost of the top up has been announced and to purchase £1 per week additional state pension would cost a single payment of £890.  The maximum level of additional state pension you can buy is £25 per week, which would cost in total £22,230. 

Again, pick up the phone and call 0115 8400 333 to have a chat with your Financial Adviser here at Firth & Scott Financial Services Ltd if you wish to discuss the merits of topping up your state pension benefits.