Five ways people may engage with pensions dashboards

Pensions dashboards are set to be a game-changer, getting people more engaged with their pension savings than ever before. But everyone’s different, and people are likely to respond to dashboards in various ways. It will be vital for pension schemes and the wider industry to be prepared for the most common questions that people will have.

Here are some personas which we think encapsulate the most common ways people will engage with dashboards – along with some insights into the questions they are likely to have.

 
You had me at hello!

Isabelle takes an active role in managing her money and is really interested in her pension. She may be among the one in three (36%) of Brits who are already investing.^[1] She has downloaded her pension scheme’s mobile app and regularly checks in on the value of her investments. When her benefits statement arrives, far from languishing in a drawer, she quickly opens and reads it.

What questions could she have?

As a pensions enthusiast, Isabelle is likely to be interested in the dashboards when she hears about them. She will likely have questions that she will raise with her provider, meaning an uptick in work for providers and administrators. For instance, if anything looks wrong, she will likely query it.

 
I’ll think about this later.

Disinterested Dan is much less likely to be interested in pension dashboards. He’s probably among the two in five in the UK population who don’t know they can choose how much they pay into their pension.^[2]

Dan puts his annual benefits statement in a drawer, intending to read it, but usually doesn’t get around to it. People like Dan are likely to be similarly disinterested in dashboards.

What questions could he have?

Disinterested, Dan is unlikely to have any questions about his pension until it’s time to make retirement decisions.

 
I have a pension? Tell me more…

Curious Camille’s feelings about dashboards are likely to reflect those of most pension savers. She has kept track of her most recent pension pots but may have lost track of others over the years.

Camille is likely to log into the dashboard and have some questions. Perhaps she doesn’t recognise some of her pension savings, due to consolidation or other changes. She may want to understand what her pension would be worth if she took it now or wish to explore her options.

What questions could she have?

Curious Camille and her cohort are the most likely to generate work for pension providers and administrators in the form of queries, transfer value requests, and other forms of transaction.

 
The Uncertain Umbertos of this world could be vulnerable to the unscrupulous. They are prone to need help making financial decisions and could find the sums of money in their pension savings daunting.

It is unclear how they will respond to being presented with the information on pensions dashboards, especially at a time when every penny matters more than ever to many people.

What questions could he have?

From an administration perspective, the pensions industry can expect more queries from this population. They are likely to want reassurance before making any financial decisions, potentially prompting more work for pension schemes that need to do their due diligence before permitting transfers.

 
This group of people have traditionally put pensions into the “too difficult” category in their minds. However, while Change My Mind Caroline may have buried their heads in the sand to date, having all their information in one, easily accessible place, may be a catalyst for change. They may start taking an interest in their pensions, especially when they see the total value of their pots.

What questions could she have?

As Change My Mind Caroline hasn’t engaged with pensions to date, they may have forgotten details like the usernames and passwords they will need to log into their portals or pensions apps. Dashboards going live could lead to a significant uptick in requests for these details.

What does all this mean for pension schemes and the wider industry?

We hope that by exploring some of the personas above, you will see that whether they’re Change My Mind Caroline’s or Informed Isabelle’s, people logging into their dashboards for the first time will likely have questions.

These questions should be welcomed: after all, the point of the dashboards project is to encourage people to engage with their pension savings. The vast majority of pension schemes and corporates – 81% – said that dashboards will drive greater digital engagement amongst members, when polled at a WTW dashboards webinar in May 2023.

This means that pensions providers, administrators and schemes alike must think carefully about how to resource their call centres and helpdesks when dashboards go live.

Technology is likely to be a big help when used effectively. For example, if pension schemes have put in place technology which will put more power in the hands of members, they will save themselves work. For instance, technology can create ways for savers to easily update their details when moving house. Pension schemes should talk to their providers and advisers about what they could do more. Now might be the time to invest in an app, for example.

Much of the secret to dashboards success comes back to good, old-fashioned data preparation. If schemes have the correct details for past and present members, then those members are much more likely to be accounted for on dashboards, resulting in fewer “Where’s my pension?” telephone calls to providers and administrators.

Good luck to everyone preparing for the launch of dashboards – and please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or would like to discuss your own scheme’s plans in more detail.

Footnotes

1. “Sticky and Censuswide research for HSBC,” October 2022. Return to article undo
2. “Beyond the Defaults,” Nest Insight, Invesco and maslansky + partners, November 2020. Return to article undo