4.3 UK - Pension Consolidation Made Easy: Transfer Old Pots & Dump High-Cost Default Funds
Once you've mapped out your pensions, decide whether what you have is right for you. If not, you have the power to change that.
Missed last week? Read it here, or see the full escape map here
Living in the USA? Read the USA version here
TL;DR: Pension Consolidation Made Easy
If you’ve had more than one job, you probably have old pensions scattered across providers
Some of them may be sitting in low-growth, high-fee funds
Use the Pension Mapper to track them all down
Switch out of expensive default funds if needed
Consider transferring old pensions into a SIPP to lower fees, invest how you want, and simplify your portfolio
Pension Spaghetti
If you’re like most people, and have worked for a few different employers, you will have multiple old pensions which you have forgotten about, or paid no attention too, and a current workplace pension.
Your pension landscape may be a bit of a mess.
And, all of these pensions might be invested in asset classes or allocations that you may or may not be happy with.
But you have the power.
You can decide what all of those are invested in.
Want 100% equities? You got it.
Want 60-40%, go for it.
But first you need to find out where your pensions are.
The Pension Mapper - Find your pensions
Use the Pension Mapper worksheet to track down all your pensions.
You may have already done this in 2.3 Discovering What You Already Own, but if you didn’t, here’s your chance.
This is a vital step in understanding your current situation — and in taking full ownership of your financial future.
Download the Pension Mapper here:
In it, list:
Each pension you know about
Whether it's a Defined Contribution (DC) or Defined Benefit (DB) pension
The current value or pot size (if DC) or expected future annual income (if DB)
See the pensions section below on the difference between the two types of pension
Start with the State Pension
Visit: www.gov.uk/check-state-pension
You’ll get a forecast of what you’re entitled to — and when.
In then Pension Mapper - write down the annual amount (not the weekly or monthly)
Then… Do Some Detective Work
Track down the rest of your pensions. Be tenacious. Use every tool you’ve got:
📞 Contact old employers — ask who your pension provider was
🧾 Check past payslips and old pension statements
🔍 Use the Pension Tracing Service: gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details
🗂️ Group pensions by type: DB (Defined Benefit), DC (Defined Contribution), SIPP
Contact Each Provider
Once you’ve identified them:
Ask for online access or a recent statement
Ask if it’s a Defined Benefit or Defined Contribution Pension
Look at what the money is invested in
Ask yourself: Does this reflect what I believe in?
If not — do you want a different asset allocation?
Switching From the Workplace Pension Default Fund
Unless you specify what you want your pension invested in, providers will put your money in their default option.
It will more often be a safe, low volatility, lower returns fund.
This may or may not be what you want.
You may have a 20+ year time horizon, and want all equities, or you may just want to pay a lower fee.
I once helped a friend to investigate an old work pension. He found out that it had been invested in cash, and had earned on average less than 1% per year, whilst inflation was at 2% or above, for over a decade.
So for almost 15 years it had been losing money in the inflation trap - a decision made by his employer.
He took back control, and instructed the provider to invest in a global equities index fund.
My Current Workplace Pension
With my current workplace pension - I looked at the funds they were offering, and chose one that matched my All in Equities asset allocation.
It had the lowest fee, and was the best performing fund they offered.
Taking Back Control: Transferring old pensions to a SIPP
If you’re no longer contributing to old workplace pensions, they’re just… sitting there.
You might be happy with their performance.
But you might not be.
A SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension) gives you back control.
Your SIPP provider can contact your old employers’ pension provider and transfer the funds into your SIPP — at no cost:
Contact your SIPP provider
Check that they can transfer old workplace pensions across
Give them the account details of all your old pensions you want to consolidate
They will do all the legwork for you, and let you know when it’s done.
You can choose to transfer the money as cash, and then choose how to invest it, or you can ask them to rebuy the same index funds/assets as you had in the old pension.
If this is not possible, then your SIPP provider will ask you to select a new fund to buy
But the key point is - once it’s there, you can invest it in whatever you like.
You’re back in the driver’s seat.
How I Took Back Control
When I did this, it was far easier than I expected.
I had just opened a SIPP and was investing monthly into a low-fee S&P 500 index fund (0.05% fee).
Then I checked on an old workplace pension. It was:
Underperforming
Sitting in a fund with 1.25% annual fees
That’s 25x more expensive for worse performance.
I gave my SIPP provider the account number of my old workplace pension.
They contacted the old provider, arranged the transfer — and two weeks later, it was done.
No fees.
Just freedom and control.
I reinvested that money into the same index fund — and never looked back.
Recap - Untangling Your Pension Spaghetti
You may have multiple pensions scattered across different providers — old jobs, forgotten pots, or default investments you never chose.
Some of those pensions might be sitting in low-growth, high-fee funds — or worse, slowly losing value to inflation.
You have the right — and the power — to take control
Track down your pensions using the Pension Mapper
Contact providers, request access, and check what you're invested in
Decide if your money is working the way you want it to
Consider switching your current workplace pension to a fund that matches your desired asset allocation more closely
Consider using a SIPP to help you bring together your old pensions, lower your fees, and invest with full visibility and control.
💡 This is your first real act of ownership.
You’re no longer guessing what you have - you’re choosing what to do with it.
Next up, you’ll explore the ISA — your tax-free growth account with total flexibility.
Up Next: UK ISAs - Tax free investing that actually is real
Disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute personal financial advice. Everyone’s situation is different — if in doubt, speak to a qualified, regulated financial adviser.