If you don't choose where to invest your pension, you'll automatically be invested in your scheme's default fund, where your pension contributions are managed for you, from the moment you join your scheme right up to retirement, designed for those who prefer a hands-off approach to saving for retirement.
If you decide the default option isn't right for you, perhaps because it takes more or less risk than you're comfortable with, or because it's targeting an outcome that doesn't suit you, there are other fund choices available to you. What you choose depends largely on how confident you are making investment decisions and your attitude to risk.
If you don’t choose a fund yourself, your savings will be invested in the default fund chosen by your employer. You can find out what your scheme default fund is by logging into your account where you’ll also find a fund factsheet and your current plan value.
The advantage of a default fund is that your pension contributions are invested and managed for you, from the moment you join your scheme right up to retirement. A default fund aims to grow your savings during the early stages of your career, automatically changing your investments throughout your working life, before gradually moving into investments that are considered lower risk as you approach retirement. This type of fund may be referred to as a Lifestyle fund.
Default funds are ideal for those who prefer a hands-off approach to saving for retirement. However, they don’t take into account individual circumstances or specific retirement plans, so it’s important to ensure your investment strategy aligns with your financial goals as you may find you want to take your savings in a different way.
Your employer will have chosen to target one of three outcomes:
- Flexible - your savings remain invested and you can draw down funds when you want to.
- Annuity purchase - you make the choice to buy an anuity which is a guaranteed income for life.
- Cash - take a cash lump sum.
Your employer will have set a target retirement age for you. This is the age your plan to access your retirement savings. It's important to check that you are happy with your target retirement age, as it may impact your investment strategy. It's also important to check you are happy with the outcome you are targeting, as you may decide you want to take your retirement savings in a different way - see our Guide me section below.
If you decide the default option isn't right for you, perhaps because it takes more or less risk than you're comfortable with, or because it's targeting an outcome that doesn't suit you, your employer may have selected a shortlist of alternative funds to choose from.
Workplace Target range
We offer a range of workplace target funds, in addition to our main default fund, the Aegon Workplace Default. These funds also have built-in lifestyling, which means they change automatically as you move through your working life towards retirement. They could be a good option if you don't feel you want to manage your own investment portfolio but want to choose a different retirement outcome or risk level from your pension scheme default fund. The range also includes an ethical option.
See our range of workplace target funds below split by retirement outcome:
Ready-made solutions
If you want a slightly more hands-on approach to your retirement savings, but still want to keep it simple, we have a range of ready-made solutions, our Risk Managed Portfolios. You choose the level of risk you’re most comfortable with, from cautious through to adventurous, and we manage your portfolio for you.
Just be aware that, as there’s no lifestyling strategy built in, you’ll need to review your choice of fund often, particularly as you get closer to retirement.
If you're a more confident investor or have a financial adviser to help you, Aegon Workplace Solutions offers you a huge choice of over 5,000 investment funds (as at 31 December 2024) from which to build an investment strategy tailored to your needs.
Log in to your account to explore the full range of options available to you, or go to our Fund research centre and search for a fund name or fund code to view the latest fund factsheets.
Help and support
You’ll need to review your choices often to make sure that your fund choices remain appropriate throughout your working life and particularly as you move into retirement. To get a few tips on what to think about when choosing investments, watch our Investing: the basics video in our beginner's guide.
If you’re at all unsure whether a fund is suitable for you, you may want to speak to a financial adviser. If you don’t have an adviser, you can visit MoneyHelper to find the right one for you, or contact Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us. There may be a charge for this service.
Important information
There’s no guarantee a fund will meet its objectives. The value of an investment can fall as well as rise and isn't guaranteed. The final value of your pension pot when you come to take benefits may be less than has been paid in. Before deciding to invest in a fund it's important to read the fund factsheet to find out more about where it invests, its objectives, charges and any fund-specific risks.
