HMRC Is Watching The Gifts You Make (Be careful)

How Much Do You Need in Your Pension to Retire at 67?

Do you know what most people actually retire with in the UK? The latest ONS data puts the median pension pot for someone aged 55 to 64 at just £107,000. At the current safe withdrawal rate, that gives you roughly £22 a day after essentials. And 43% of working age people are heading for a shortfall according to the DWP's own 2025 analysis. Even the 75th percentile pot of £185,000 falls well short of what's needed for a moderate retirement. In this episode, I walk through the real data at every age band, show what £107,000 actually buys you each month, and explain why the gender pension gap leaves women aged 55 to 59 holding roughly half of what men have. I also cover the practical moves that make the biggest difference, including why buying back missing National Insurance years at £824 each is one of the best returns available and how working just two to three extra years has a triple compounding effect on your income. With over 25 years advising individuals and employers on pension and retirement strategies across PwC, EY, Aon, Willis Towers Watson, and KPMG, I've seen how the gap between what people think they have and what they actually need catches them out every time. Watch this episode in full on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@retirementandmoney

How Much Do Men & Women Actually Retire With?

Do you know what most people actually retire with in the UK? The latest ONS data puts the median pension pot for someone aged 55 to 64 at just £107,000. At the current safe withdrawal rate, that gives you roughly £22 a day after essentials. And 43% of working age people are heading for a shortfall according to the DWP's own 2025 analysis. Even the 75th percentile pot of £185,000 falls well short of what's needed for a moderate retirement. In this episode, I walk through the real data at every age band, show what £107,000 actually buys you each month, and explain why the gender pension gap leaves women aged 55 to 59 holding roughly half of what men have. I also cover the practical moves that make the biggest difference, including why buying back missing National Insurance years at £824 each is one of the best returns available and how working just two to three extra years has a triple compounding effect on your income. With over 25 years advising individuals and employers on pension and retirement strategies across PwC, EY, Aon, Willis Towers Watson, and KPMG, I've seen how the gap between what people think they have and what they actually need catches them out every time. Watch this episode in full on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@retirementandmoney

What Do Retirees Actually Spend a Month In Retirement?

Do you know what £10 a day in retirement actually looks like? The average single retiree in the UK has roughly £300 left each month after paying for essentials. That's about £10 a day for everything that isn't council tax, energy, water, food, or transport. And with food inflation heading towards 9% by year end and low income pensioners spending nearly three times as much of their income on energy as higher earners, that £10 is shrinking fast. In this episode, I break down the real monthly budget of a single retired person with a paid off mortgage and show exactly where £1,222 a month goes. I explain why the State Pension is about to cross the Personal Allowance threshold for the first time, why over a million pensioners now pay the 40% tax rate, and why the widely quoted figure of £31,700 for a moderate retirement overstates what most single retirees actually spend by nearly £14,000. With over 25 years advising individuals and employers on pension and retirement strategies across PwC, EY, Aon, Willis Towers Watson, and KPMG, I've seen how the gap between expected and actual retirement spending catches people out every time. Watch this episode in full on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@retirementandmoney

How Much Money Can You Gift Tax-Free? (5 Ways To Do It)

Do you know how much you can actually gift tax free in 2026? Most families assume there's a single limit on what you can give away. But there are five separate allowances you can stack together in a single year, and a married couple using wedding and annual exemptions together can legally hand over £16,000 to a child without any inheritance tax consequences at all. One of those exemptions has no upper limit whatsoever, yet most people have never heard of it. In this episode, I walk through every gifting allowance available, explain how the 7 year rule really works, and cover the two traps that catch families out most often. One is the common belief that taper relief reduces the value of a gift when it actually only reduces the tax rate. The other is gifts with reservation of benefit, where HMRC treats a gift as though it never happened because the giver kept using it. With over 25 years advising individuals and employers on pension and estate planning across PwC, EY, Aon, Willis Towers Watson, and KPMG, I've seen countless families pay inheritance tax they simply didn't need to. Watch this episode in full on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@retirementandmoney

Can You Open a Pension For Your Grandchildren?

Can you actually open a pension for your grandchild? Most grandparents don't realise this option even exists. A Junior SIPP lets you contribute to a pension for a grandchild from the day they're born, and the government tops up every payment with 20% tax relief automatically. Just £50 a month from birth could grow to around £146,000 by the time they reach retirement age. Max out the allowance at £240 a month and that figure could reach over £700,000. In this episode, I explain exactly how a Junior SIPP works, why only a parent can open one but anyone can pay in, and how the annual limit of £2,880 gets topped up to £3,600 by HMRC. I compare it with a Junior ISA so you can see which suits your family, and I cover the inheritance tax planning angle that's becoming increasingly important ahead of the April 2027 changes. With over 25 years advising individuals and employers on pension and retirement strategies across PwC, EY, Aon, Willis Towers Watson, and KPMG, I see this question from grandparents constantly and most are surprised by how powerful the numbers are. Watch this episode in full on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@retirementandmoney