After being made redundant by British Airways last year, I have retrained as a teacher.
I have two BA pensions. The first is a final salary NAPS (New Airways Pension Scheme) that I contributed to from 1993 till its closure in 2018.
I also have around £40,000 in the money purchase British Airways Pension Plan/Aviva scheme that replaced it.
Career change: Should I move my pensions to the teacher’s scheme?
I am wondering whether it is worthwhile transferring both or either into the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.
My new salary is considerably less – and unlikely to ever match my previous salary at BA, hence I’m concerned about the ‘final salary’ implications.
Any advice would be gratefully appreciated.
Tanya Jefferies, of This is Money, replies: Deciding whether to transfer from one salary-related pension scheme to another is a tricky business.
Much depends on the rules and benefits of each scheme, as well your own personal circumstances, and your other savings such as your BA defined contribution pension pot.
These will all be so specific that it will be worth paying a independent financial adviser to go through the details to ensure you get this right.
Even if they tell you to keep your BA pensions where they are and effectively ‘do nothing’, you will still learn a lot of valuable information about your finances and be reassured that you have made a well-informed decision by the end of the process.
If you wish, you can ask an adviser to help you on a one-off basis, without signing up to a long-term relationship.
Ideally, ask for recommendations from friends and family to find someone good.
If they can’t help, use the search services Unbiased and VouchedFor, or the Personal Finance Society’s members’ page.