Later Life Redundancy

Redundancy can be an incredibly stressful experience, particularly towards the end of a long and productive career.

Andrew was recently introduced to a client, whom we will refer to as Bob.

Bob had spent his entire career in the construction industry, ultimately rising to the position of senior director at a national house-building firm. However, at the age of 59, he faced compulsory redundancy.

His intention had been to work until reaching the state pension age of 67.

Initially, the introduction to Andrew focused on the pensions that Bob had accrued throughout his working career.

While we were gathering this information, Bob was diligently working to secure another role. It wasn't until several months later that the reality set in, finding another job, despite all his experience, was much more challenging than anticipated.

When he sat down with Andrew to review the pensions, it became apparent that he might be able to retire earlier than expected.

Andrew developed a plan that released some tax-free cash to repay his mortgage and fund ISAs for both him and his wife, allowing for future tax-free withdrawals. The pension that provided the tax-free cash also offers an income that includes an uplift, to state pension age.

This arrangement enables Bob to receive income sufficient to cover his expenses (less the mortgage payments) and retire seven years earlier than he had originally planned.