When you join your pension scheme, your contributions will be invested into a default fund. This means that your contributions are invested and managed for you, from the moment you join your scheme right through to retirement.
A default fund automatically adjusts what it invests in as you get closer to retirement. It aims to grow your savings during the early years, before gradually moving into investments that are considered to be lower-risk as you approach retirement.
Default funds are ideal for those who prefer a hands-off approach to saving for retirement. However, they don’t consider your personal 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 retirement savings in a particular way.
It’s also important to make sure your target retirement age is accurate, as this has a direct influence on where your savings are invested.
Log in to your account to find out where your savings are invested, to check your investments, or to make changes.
Please remember, the value of investments isn't guaranteed and may go down as well as up. You may get back less than you invest.
Other investment options
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.
Ready-made funds with lifestyling
- We offer alternative lifestyle funds that automatically adjust your investments as you move through your working life towards retirement. These may be a good fit if you want a different risk level or a different retirement outcome to what your scheme’s default provides.
Ready-made funds without lifestyling
- If you prefer a solution that doesn’t use lifestyling, our six Risk‑Managed Portfolios offer a choice of risk levels, with expert asset allocation and strong governance built in.
Choose your own investments
- If you're a more confident investor or have a financial adviser to help you, Aegon Retirement Choices 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.
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.
