Charges and services offered by a pension provider can be key for advisers, with many looking at these elements before anything else. Table 2 details these areas, including initial and annual fees as well as charges for buying property – one of the key aspects of a SSAS, much like their Sipp counterpart.
On the whole, fees have not changed drastically in the past 12 months, although some providers have either increased or reduced their charges. Hornbuckle, for example, has detailed its initial fee as £300 to set up or £1,000 as a takeover – last year its figure was just £700, so many customers will benefit from this reduction, which comes into action on 1 February. Rowanmoor’s initial fee has also slightly increased from £1,150 to £1,160 this year. Elsewhere, new Talbot & Muir customers will be pleased to see its initial fee has halved from £1,500 to £750.
Annual fees have also changed slightly for some providers. James Hay has altered its fees for clients from £400 plus £100 per month and capped at £650 for five members and above. This year, its fees are £750 for one member, £950 for two, £1050 for three, £1,150 for four members and for five or more, the annual fee sits at £1,250.
Table 2 also looks closely at charges for buying property, something which is a large factor of SSASs, as with Sipps. In general, fees haven’t changed drastically in the past year, although there have been some minor changes. Day Cooper Day has amended its fees from £350-900 to a flat £400 when buying commercial property, while James Hay has increased fees from £500 to £750. A property purchase fee from Rowanmoor will save clients now, as it has dropped from £725 in 2015 to £600. Next year’s survey will ask providers for more in-depth fees for property for advisers to get a better idea of figures behind the headlines.
Table 3 shows the different types of SSASs available from each provider. All providers offer full SSASs, but just a handful offer others. This Table is similar to last year, in that few offer a hybrid, 90/10 (where 90 per cent of assets are invested in insured funds) or a deferred SSAS (which is invested wholly in insurance company pension funds). Scottish Widows offers a hybrid, as does IPM Trustees and Old Mill, who both also offer deferred SSASs.
