I’ve been with my current company for 15 months and have been sent an automatic pension scheme enrolment details for something called the NEST (national employment savings trust). Currently contributions are 1% increasing to 3 & 5 in subsequent years from 2018.

I am thinking of moving on from this current job (he says hopefully) before Christmas and for the little I will contribute I’m considering opting straight out. Its only 1% but its something I cant afford right now and as I haven’t paid into a pension scheme since I was made redundant 2 years it hardly seems worth it.

If you don’t save into a pension scheme, how are you planning on funding your retirement?

I have a forces pension and 14 years final salary at previous company. Last 2 years wages have been either 0 or I have not had access to a work scheme (until now) aside from contributions made to the state pension, which I do not believe will exist or be worth a fart in a jar when I retire.

All the salary from my part-time/part-year job goes into a NEST pension as that was what my employer was offering.

When you say contributions are 1% – are you sure? That seems like much too small a number. What is your employer also throwing into the pot? Mine adds 10% of whatever I contribute, plus there’s the tax refund.

If you’re definitely moving on soon then there seems little point in starting up another pension saving scheme – unless of course your next employer also uses NEST (it’s fairly common). You can also transfer in/out of NEST as your circumstances change.

When you say contributions are 1% – are you sure?

The law changed recently so all companies have to enrol employees into a company pension scheme with min rate of 1% from the employer and 0.8% from the employee.

I get automatically enrolled even though I already have a pension scheme with my current employer – which seems a bit daft.

auto-enrolment is the lower end scheme

most corporate pensions offer more, but those that don’t have one, or for those at the lower paid volume worker end of the scale, they offer the NEST style scheme

Contributions are rubbish but they’re better than 0.

If you can’t afford it I would skip it, especially as you have a good couple of schemes already. But, it’s free money you’re giving away

If you’re moving on between now and the year end it might not be worth it, your next employer may not be using NEST (I think there’s another large scale provider and a million smaller ones) so you might end up paying in £20-£30 or whatever and forgetting about it.

Make no mistake though, Auto-Enrolment is going to replace or at least be merged with the State Pension (once the Boomers are richly rewarded for their immeasurable contribution to what’s left of society) so I’d think carefully before opting out at your next job. It starts off low to ease employees and employers into the idea, but within a few years it’ll be a more realist figure.

I work in a company with only 3 FT employees (which might sound great but and some times it is, but its none stop)
My contributions would be 1% until April then 3%, then 2019 5%, the company will also contribute but its 1/2/3% during that period.

Think I will wait as the plan is to move back into a larger company.

Just for information:
Contributions are not normally calculated on your whole salary.
The statutory minimum is based on earnings ABOVE £490 per month.

Also, you have the right to opt-out in the first month, and get a full refund of your contributions.
Pensions Regulator – Opting out
So perhaps that might be a better course of action, while you are still looking for a new job?