Profile Pensions review

Find out how to track down of some of your old pension funds with Profile Pensions.

Not enough reviews Write a review
Profile Pensions

Leave a review

Your review

Thanks for your review.
Close

Read Terms and Conditions here

Profile Pensions is a service that helps you find missing pension pots and consolidate them into one – letting you keep track of them all in the same place, potentially reducing your fees and helping you make the most out of your pension.

We’ve looked at how Profile Pensions works, how much it costs and whether it can help you pull off your dream retirement in the countryside or on the beach.

What is Profile Pensions?

Profile Pensions is a digital and telephone-based pension adviser. Profile Pensions doesn’t hold any funds, so it isn’t a pension provider, but it will help you track down your pensions, tell you if you’re currently on a good deal and help you switch if you decide to do so.

It says it currently has around 25,000 customers in the UK and offers both a one-off initial service (tracking and switching of your pension) and a maintenance service (monitoring of your pension to make sure you’re on the best deal).

How does Profile Pensions work?

The process may take a few weeks and will usually happen in the following steps:

  1. Sign up. You’ll need to fill in an online form giving Profile Pensions your details and the information you already have about your pensions. You can ask it to track down any that are missing.
  2. Profile Pensions finds and reviews your pensions. After you’ve signed up, Profile Pensions will track down all your pensions for you (which will take six weeks on average) and review them and their performance (depending on how long it takes for the providers to get back to Profile Pensions, this may take another eight weeks). So all in all, it could be around three months before you hear from Profile Pensions again.
  3. A pension adviser calls you back. The adviser will tell you what they’ve found and whether they have a better deal in mind for you, which happens in approximately 70% of cases, Profile Pensions says. Up until this point, the service comes for free.
  4. You switch (if you want to). If Profile Pensions is unable to help you improve your pension deal, or if you decide not to take the advice, nothing happens. Instead, if you do decide to switch, Profile Pensions will take care of that as well, but ask for a fee in return.
  5. Profile Pensions keeps monitoring your pension (if you want). For a yearly fee, Profile Pensions will keep an eye on your pension, tracking its performance and checking that you’re still making the best out of it. Your adviser will also schedule a yearly call to update you on how things are looking. You can opt-out of the monitoring service at any time.

What other options are available?

There are a number of pension advisers available out there, so Profile Pensions definitely isn’t your only shot. With many, you’ll have to visit them in person, but there are other digital services that allow you to do it online.

In addition to comparing fees and prices, always make sure your financial adviser is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

If you only want to look for your old pensions and you’ve forgotten where your employers were holding them, the government also has a free searchable database of pension providers.

Instead, if you’re looking for a digital service that both tracks down your pensions and directly invests and manages them, you may want to take a look at PensionBee.

How much does Profile Pensions cost?

Having your pensions found and receiving advice comes free. If you then decide to switch, Profile Pensions will 1% on the amount that you transfer. There is a maximum fee of £2,500 per policy.

If you choose to also have Profile Pensions monitor your pension, you’ll be charged around 0.83% to 0.92% a year, depending on which funds you choose (which you’ll pay monthly). This is made up of a platform charge (0.12%0, a fund charge (around 0.11% – 0.20%) and ongoing advice (0.6%).

Is Profile Pensions safe?

Profile Pensions will advise you on investing your pension funds, which always carries a risk: investments can go up as well as down so you should always keep that in mind. Speak to your Profile Pensions adviser about the level of risk you’re willing to take and they’ll advise you accordingly.

Profile Pensions doesn’t hold any funds, so your deposits are as safe as your provider keeps them: always check they’re protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Finally, as an adviser, Profile Pensions is registered with the FCA and covered by the FSCS: basically, in case of misleading advice, poor investment management or misrepresentation, the government will reimburse you 100% of your investment up to £85,000.

Pros and cons of Profile Pensions

Pros

  • Quick and easy online sign-up
  • Free pension tracking and advice
  • Personalised service
  • FCA regulated and FSCS protected

Cons

  • Profile Pensions doesn’t manage your money directly
  • There may be extra fees charged by the provider

Compare SIPP providers

Name Product UKFSF Brand description Min investment Min monthly investment Number of funds Transfer available Offer Link
Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP
Hargreaves Lansdown is the UK's biggest wealth manager. It's got three different retirement options. Capital at risk.
£100
£25
2500

Capital at risk

Platform details
OFFER
Interactive Investor SIPP
£0
£25
3000
Get £100 to £2,000 cashback if you open an ii SIPP by 30 September and deposit £10,000 min. T&Cs apply. Capital at risk.

Capital at risk

Platform details
AJ Bell SIPP
AJ Bell has two different pension options, a self managed pension and one that is managed for you. Capital at risk.
£1,000
£0
2000

Capital at risk

Platform details
InvestEngine SIPP
InvestEngine SIPP
£100
£0
660+ ETFs
Get a Welcome Bonus of up to £50 when you invest at least £100 with InvestEngine. T&Cs apply.

Capital at risk

Platform details
Charles Stanley SIPP
Charles Stanley SIPP
£0
£0
>10,000
Get up to £1,500 cashback when you transfer your cash and/or investments to Charles Stanley Direct. T&Cs apply. Capital at risk.

Capital at risk

Platform details
loading

All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.


Frequently asked questions

Pensions are long-term investments. You may get back less than you originally paid in because your capital is not guaranteed and charges may apply. Keep in mind that the tax treatment of your pension and investments will depend on your individual circumstances and may change in the future. Capital at risk.
We show offers we can track - that's not every product on the market...yet. Unless we've said otherwise, products are in no particular order. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations of these) aren't ratings, though we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it. This is subject to our terms of use. When you make major financial decisions, consider getting independent financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances when you compare products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables has the source: Moneyfacts Group PLC. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
Valentina Cipriani's headshot
Writer

Valentina Cipriani was a writer at Finder UK. She wrote news, features and guides about banking and credit cards, helping people to improve their financial lives. She holds an MA in International Journalism. See full bio

More guides on Finder

  • Freetrade pension review

    Freetrade’s SIPP promises fee-free share dealing and the ability to take control of your pension.

  • Overpaid pension tax

    We explain why there’s a risk of paying too much pension tax and how you can get overpaid pension tax back if you’re affected.

  • Pension drawdown explained

    Find out how a pension drawdown works and how it compares to buying a pension annuity.

  • What is a group personal pension?

    Find out how a group personal pension works and how you can use a workplace pension scheme to build your wealth.

  • Workplace pensions

    Tax relief and employer contributions mean that saving into a workplace pension is an invaluable way to bolster your retirement income.

  • Are pension contributions taxable?

    Find out about the tax that you pay on your pension including how much the allowance is and how you claim tax relief on your contributions.

  • Aviva pensions review

    Discover how the Aviva pension works, how much it costs and what we thought of it. We’ve listed some features and pros and cons.

  • Moneybox pension review

    Moneybox’s pension service can help track down your old pensions and put them into one pot. We take a closer look to see how it stacks up.

  • PensionBee review

    In this guide, we break down the pension offering from the online provider PensionBee, including a look at its history, fees, frequently asked questions and more.

  • What is pension credit?

    If you’re confused about pension credit, we’re here to explain things in simple terms. We’ve answered the most commonly asked questions related to pension credit.

Go to site