Pension advice please, clueless!

[Mollyeyes]

I have a previous pension with Scottish Widows whilst employed. If I work for another company is it best to join their pension scheme with different provider (I will be 40% taxpayer) or should I pay into Scottish Widows? Will I still get tax relief, I guess if I do that I won’t get employers contribution? Just worried I will have yet again another pension with a different provider which I might again need to transfer and the headache of it.

Or should I look at a SIPP rather than company pension scheme will I lose out on employers contribution then?

Sorry haven’t got a clue.
Thank you

Best to join your employers pension as it’s fairly likely they will operate it through salary sacrifice. This means you will save tax AND NI, plus free money from employer via contribution. You won’t get the NI saving or employer contribution if you open your own personal pension.

Re having multiple pension pots it’s incredibly common. You can choose to consolidate them to make them easier to manage, though watch out if you have any valuable guarantees or benefits attached to any of them as you will lose these. Consolidation really isn’t that painful a process now, just make sure you have all your paperwork. Providers generally make it a straightforward process (as they’ll want your money!)

I have a few difference pensions and I did transfer one ( as I only worked there 10 months before being let go ) so I put I into my Scottish widows, but really my Scottish widows fund wasn't performing well, so the transfer went into a different fund with them. I don't have much.

I have one of those government best pensions too.

*Nest pensions

I always have two pensions. My current work one and my personal one.
When I've moved jobs I've consolidated the old work one into the personal one, just so I e only got one set of records to keep straight.
I have an IFA that advises me on my personal pension

Thank you everyone.
@Bumply can I ask if there’s a limit to how much you can put into a personal pension if you’re also contributing to company pension?

https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-your-private-pension/annual-allowance

Apparently you can pay up to £40k per year into combined pensions, with possibility of carrying over unused limit from up to 3 previous years.

Not a limit I've ever been concerned with

@Bumply thank you. May I ask do you think it’s good idea to top your company pension to take advantage of them paying in too or top up your own personal pension?

If your employer contributes to your company pension then that's free money. Why wouldn't you take advantage of that?

Thank you, For personal pension does the government contribute too at all ?

@Mollyeyes..Your pension provider will claim tax relief from hmrc at the basic rate.If you are a high rate tax payer you will need to claim the other 20% through your self- assessment tax return.

Government contribution (in the form of tax relief) is the same % regardless of whether it's an employer scheme or private pension, but as @regretsandregrets has said, if you're a higher rate taxpayer you have go claim back your marginal rate for the private pension. ,

Thank you everyone for your valuable advice x