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| How Near Is the End? Britain May Tell Retirees | How Near Is the End? Britain May Tell Retirees |
| (5 months later) | |
| LONDON — British retirees may soon receive a novel kind of financial advice, courtesy of the state: They could be told when they are likely to die. | |
| “People are living a lot longer, so we have to make sure they have up-to-date information,” the pensions minister, Steve Webb, said Thursday in an interview with the BBC. | “People are living a lot longer, so we have to make sure they have up-to-date information,” the pensions minister, Steve Webb, said Thursday in an interview with the BBC. |
| “There’s no point being all British and coy about it,” he said. Gender, age and “perhaps asking one or two basic questions, like whether you’ve smoked or not,” Mr. Webb said, should be enough to determine how long, on average, someone is likely to live. Having an idea of life expectancy would help retirees with private pensions manage their finances more efficiently, he said. | “There’s no point being all British and coy about it,” he said. Gender, age and “perhaps asking one or two basic questions, like whether you’ve smoked or not,” Mr. Webb said, should be enough to determine how long, on average, someone is likely to live. Having an idea of life expectancy would help retirees with private pensions manage their finances more efficiently, he said. |
| Prime Minister David Cameron’s center-right Conservative Party has long prided itself on opposing what it calls a “nanny state” — government being overly involved in people’s affairs. | Prime Minister David Cameron’s center-right Conservative Party has long prided itself on opposing what it calls a “nanny state” — government being overly involved in people’s affairs. |
| Mr. Webb’s comments on Thursday came a month after the government announced a far-reaching overhaul of private pension rules that was hailed as a step away from state intervention. Under the new rules, retirees will be able to choose a lump-sum payment instead of buying an annuity, a guaranteed income until death. | Mr. Webb’s comments on Thursday came a month after the government announced a far-reaching overhaul of private pension rules that was hailed as a step away from state intervention. Under the new rules, retirees will be able to choose a lump-sum payment instead of buying an annuity, a guaranteed income until death. |
| Mr. Webb, who caused a brief stir when he said he was “relaxed” about retirees who opted to spend their pension on a Lamborghini if they wished, conceded Thursday that not everyone’s pension was big enough to buy a flashy sports car. | Mr. Webb, who caused a brief stir when he said he was “relaxed” about retirees who opted to spend their pension on a Lamborghini if they wished, conceded Thursday that not everyone’s pension was big enough to buy a flashy sports car. |
| But he insisted that, far from the government meddling in people’s lives, the new rules were about “moving away from nannying people.” | But he insisted that, far from the government meddling in people’s lives, the new rules were about “moving away from nannying people.” |
| The objective, he said, was simply to “help people to make the right choices.” | The objective, he said, was simply to “help people to make the right choices.” |
| The new retirement rules include free face-to-face consultations with a pension adviser provided by the private pension providers themselves. The government is considering whether guidance on life expectancy should be included in these consultations, amid concerns that the new rules on the timing of claiming retirement funds could result in some retirees’ running out of money. “People tend to underestimate how long they’re likely to live,” Mr. Webb said. | The new retirement rules include free face-to-face consultations with a pension adviser provided by the private pension providers themselves. The government is considering whether guidance on life expectancy should be included in these consultations, amid concerns that the new rules on the timing of claiming retirement funds could result in some retirees’ running out of money. “People tend to underestimate how long they’re likely to live,” Mr. Webb said. |
| “We don’t have a lot to go on” when planning our finances for retirement, he said. “We might think perhaps about how long our grandparents lived, and of course in the generation since then people are living a lot longer.” | “We don’t have a lot to go on” when planning our finances for retirement, he said. “We might think perhaps about how long our grandparents lived, and of course in the generation since then people are living a lot longer.” |
| Estimates of life expectancy have long been included in calculating annuities, but as retirees are given greater liberties in how and when to spend their pension savings, they ought to be made more aware of it, Mr. Webb said. | Estimates of life expectancy have long been included in calculating annuities, but as retirees are given greater liberties in how and when to spend their pension savings, they ought to be made more aware of it, Mr. Webb said. |
| The pension changes are expected to go into effect next April. | The pension changes are expected to go into effect next April. |