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Savers must battle scammers and falling stock markets

More than 1.5 million workers approaching retirement may have to delay their plans in order to preserve their savings from being ravaged by coronavirus.
Pension savers are being urged to hold off from withdrawing large amounts of cash from their pension pots to avoid locking in the steep losses caused by stock market falls over recent months. This means that the average worker over the age of 50 will have to delay retirement by three years, according to investment house Legal & General.
Today, seven major pension bodies have joined forces to help Britain through the savings crisis, after pension pots have taken a beating and savers have fallen prey to a rising number of scams. Providers have been flooded with queries from anxious customers and so have come together to create a guide answering the most pressing questions people are asking at this time.
Action Fraud, the national fraud reporting centre, said that almost 1m was lost to Covid-19 scammers in February and March. Older customers are particularly at risk, as some are having to use online banking for the very first time. Read our comprehensive guide to banking from home here.
Many will be particularly vulnerable now after seeing the value of their pension pot drop dramatically. Fraudsters are using this as an opportunity to prey on them by claiming to offer investments with market-beating returns or by posing as their pension provider and asking customers to hand over personal details.
Falling victim to a pension scam can easily cost you your retirement. The average amount lost by victims is 91,000, according to the Financial Conduct Authority, the City’s watchdog.
If you are concerned about your retirement savings lasting, there are things you can do to protect them. The first step is to calculate how much you need to retire and how much you have spread across your different pension pots. From there you can work out what you should be saving and how long those savings will last.
You could then consider whether you would be better off buying an annuity. Rates are currently quite low but vary based on your individual situation. If you have a medical condition then you may be able to get an enhanced rate, as it is based on your life expectancy. If you can, keep paying into your pension to benefit from the tax relief. Thanks to the recent stock market falls, you will also be buying more with your money.
Want to find out how to build a 250k pension pot from nothing? Here's how one Telegraph reader is doing it.
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In our comments section, Philip Hague said of Self-employed face 'cliff-edge' income drop next week if support scheme not renewed: "Many self-employed people, including me, have continued to work during lockdown but still received a grant as the criteria said that any business that had been 'affected' was eligible. So a 1pc drop in trade would qualify you for the grant. I understand that many were not able to work at all, but another blanket grant to all and sundry would be financially irresponsible. Perhaps now switch it around, so if you can prove you have had zero income for April and May, you qualify for extra support?"
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