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The
reforms, which removed the obligation to buy an annuity and
handed Britons greater choice over how to spend or invest their
savings, have helped 159,000 people to access 1.7 billion pounds
since April.
This is more than double the 820 million pounds reported in the
first quarter, insurer Aviva said in a statement in response to
the Treasury's latest numbers.
The latest rise takes the total value of payments to more than 6
billion pounds across 772,000 payments since reforms were
launched in April 2015.
"Money is tight for many, and the demands on our finite
resources – savings and property – are great. Freedom, choice
and popularity is to be celebrated, but savers must be supported
to ensure their enthusiasm today does not damage their ambitions
for tomorrow," Alistair McQueen, Savings & Retirement Manager at
Aviva said.
The government's pensions guidance service, Pension Wise, has
clocked up more than 2.7 million visits to its website and
nearly 75,000 appointments to date, indicating sustained
interest among consumers about how they can take advantage of
the new systems.
The government has also announced plans to protect consumers by
capping early exit fees and giving millions more people the
ability to trade expected income from their annuities on the
open market from April 2017, subject to agreement from their
annuity provider.
($1 = 0.7601 pounds)
(Reporting By Sinead Cruise. Editing by Jane Merriman)
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