More people accessed their pensions and more money was withdrawn in the final three months of 2020 compared to the same quarter the previous year. A total of £2.4bn was withdrawn from pensions flexibly in the three months to December 2020, representing a 6% increase from £2.2bn in Q4 2019.
The HMRC data1 shows that 360,000 people accessed their pensions in the fourth quarter of 2020, up 10% from the same period in 2019, meaning the average amount withdrawn per individual was lower. There was a 4% increase in the number of individuals withdrawing compared to the previous three months.
COVID effect
October, November and December typically see a slight drop in the number of people accessing their pensions, so this change in behaviour may be attributable to the impact of the pandemic. With unemployment and redundancies rising, many people may be feeling the need to dip into their pensions.
Consider your options
Withdrawing money from your pension savings has its risks, so it’s important to weigh up all your options carefully and seek financial advice before deciding.
1Gov, 2021
The value of investments can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. The past is not a guide to future performance and past performance may not necessarily be repeated.