Curtis Banks reveals top technical queries

SIPP provider Curtis Banks has revealed the top technical queries its support team received in 2020. Enquiries were dominated by calls about the tapered annual allowance, lifetime allowance protection and how to structure expressions of wish. The company has bolstered its technical support with recent hires including Barry Foster, who joined from BMO to take up the newly created role of technical sales manager and Andy Stuart-William who was hired for the newly created role of head of product and communications. Jessica List, pension technical manager, Curtis Banks, said: “Having spent almost 10 years dealing with technical queries at Curtis Banks, I have seen the trends change, in particular after the introduction of Pension Freedoms. “With 2020 being such a difficult year for everyone, advisers have risen to the challenge and continued to support their clients virtually. Unsurprisingly, the number of queries about how to structure expressions of wishes has increased through 2020 and the other most popular queries have been around the tapered annual allowance and lifetime allowance protection, showing that they’re among the most important, and sometimes complex, areas of pension planning.” With expressions of wish the team has seen more attention paid to the process providers and potential beneficiaries will go through when the time comes to pay death benefits. In relation to lifetime allowance protection, Curtis Banks believes the volume of queries is driven by the fact that there are now multiple protection types available, with different rules and planning considerations for each. Barry Foster, technical sales manager, said: “We learned from a recent poll that two thirds of advisers look to pension providers for technical support.” Alex Nicklin, partner at Brunel Wealth, added: “Although fewer people will have to deal with the tapered annual allowance this year – which will be very welcome news for those affected – it’s still a horribly complex set of rules for those who do still need to grapple with them.” Curtis Banks provides SIPPs and SSASs and has acquired several rivals in recent years.

Curtis Banks reveals top technical queries

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