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Standard Life: Pensions reviews

Name: Pensions
Rating: 2.39 (61 reviews)

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2.65

Based on 61 reviews, last reviewed 16th Apr 2025

100% increase in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

No new 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

21%

11%

10%

53%

Latest highest rating:

5

Leader in the industry Part of Pheonix Group, they are the leading provider of pensions and investments. Their app is great and I can do everything I choose on it including ... Read more Reviewed on: 16th April 2025

Latest lowest rating:

2

What on earth has happened to Standard Life Chris Canham Write a review Reviews 3.6 949 total 5-star 43% 4-star 5% 3-star 3% 2-star 5% 1-star 44% Sort: Chris Canham 61 reviews R... Read more Reviewed on: 25th October 2024

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About this product

Standard Life pension reviews written by Smart Money People like you. For many of us, our pension is an important part of our financial future. Finding a pension provider that you can trust and rely on is a must for many people. Take a look at our Standard Life pension reviews to find out what life at Standard Life is really like. If you hold this pension, we'd love you to write an honest review here too!

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Standard Life Pensions reviews (61)

due to retire next year

I thank god most of my pension is in a final salary scheme. I have been forced to allow standard life to manage my pension since my company closed its final salary scheme. in 4 years the only money currently in the pot is what my employer & I have put in. Standard life have achieved nothing in that time other then take their commission. Lets be frank, they don't have to try too hard since final salary schemes closed all over the UK. most employers are legally obliged to offer a pension so between standard life and the other big pension suppliers, its money for old rope. They don't really have to try too hard as they have a captured market. I feel sorry for anyone starting a pension in 2022 knowing they are going to rely on the likes of standard life to invest it over 40 years. They will be lucky if they get what they put in over that time back. Reviewed on: 20th December 2022

Appalling advice

I had a small draw down with S Life. I received a letter from them stating October would be my last draw down as I no longer had enough funds. I had lost so much that the draw down actually finished a year earlier than originally thought. I contacted the company immediately to ask how I could withdraw the final small sum. I was told I needed a form to withdraw the cash and one would be in the post 1st class.... this form never arrived after 5 days i rang again and was told to wait another 5 days due to ‘postal problems’ form never arrived so spoke to CS yet again when I was told another was in the post but I could also fill in online and they would send me a copy. An acknowledgment to say it was received was sent to me but nothing further. Rang CS yet again and this time was told I could withdraw the small amount ONLINE! Nobody had mentioned this before. However I am still waiting for my money even after various emails plus a complaint lodged. These have all been ignored! Not sure if I will ever see my money., Reviewed on: 28th November 2022

Disgusting

24 years of pension contributions and not one penny profits from it , minus 999 pound to be exact , terrible performance , would recommend to avoid at all costs , total disappointment and left me very angry Reviewed on: 25th October 2022

What a waste!

My employers selected Standard Life to manage their workplace pension, so we didn't have a say. During the 7 years that my pension contributions have been invested with them, they have lost value. I would rather have had the benefit of the money in my pay packet, as once inflation is taken into account, I am worse off. I wish I had never opted in to this scheme. Reviewed on: 21st October 2022

Lost pension payments

Standard Life are the worse company to deal with. They paid my pension into the wrong bank account, it was rejected and sent back to them and then didn’t respond to any of my requests to understand where the money went. They told me it had been paid into the correct bank account and for a month repeated this until finally someone confirmed it was their error. I still have not received the payment 6 weeks later. They don’t respond to phone calls, pass you around to different departments and their standard excise is it’s the back office’s fault (who don’t have phones)! Avoid this company at all cost. Reviewed on: 30th June 2022

Administration a Catalogue of Errors

Early last month I cashed in my Premium Bonds and paid it into my stakeholder plan. My employer pays into the pension by Direct Debit and I pay into the account by BACS through salary sacrifice. I had no direct debit set up to my bank account. In the middle of the month I transferred from a stakeholder to an active pension. Straightforward, you would think. On 31 May Standard Life refunded the money I had paid in by cashing my premium bond. I therefore lost the chance of winning a prize on these bonds and I also had an investment loss. They also took £820 out of my personal bank account for reasons the cannot explain. They also cancelled my employers direct debit so I have lost this investment too. I have called them today - 9 days after the catalogue of errors occurred - and they still have no clue how it happened and how to rectify it. Due to their complete incompetence, I am seriously worried about my investment. Reviewed on: 9th June 2022

Appauling - Lost 5K in 2 Weeks

Thanks to Standard Life investing in a terminated fund, my money is at risk. Their service is appauling, their complaint investigation is floored and as soon as whats left of my pension is accessible, I will be moving to another company. Take my advice, DO NOT USE Standard Life, and if you are already doing so, take action to transfer your investment somewhere else. Reviewed on: 13th May 2022

HORRENDOUS , OBSTRUCTIVE PENSIONS OMBUDSMEN AND COURT ACTION NOW PROGRESSING

Once a trusted company now ,something is not right , obstructive in allowing me to withdraw my fund, delays of weeks when a fund should have immediate access, these funds were to finance supplies to the Polish Border for the Ukraine Conflict , even had the nerve to suggest I should not be withdrawing my own money to help people , These guys are simply trying to obstruct and delay withdrawals so make sure you research your exit as I would no longer invest with this firm , I do no trust what they say as so many lies since February this year, false promises , similar to other reviews , DONT LEAVE YOUR FUNDS WITH THEM Reviewed on: 13th April 2022

Appauling

Although quick to respond and polite in nature, getting any coherent answer even on the most basic request take many attempts. Correspondence appears to be considered in isolation without any consideration for the history of the issue raised I’ve never experienced such incompetence anywhere previously. Reviewed on: 8th April 2022

Terrible customer Service

Avoid at all costs. I have a small Drawdown pension with Standard Life and have wasted hours trying to withdraw less than 10% of this recently. Can only withdraw tax free cash online so had to phone, as I wanted some tax free & some taxable money. When I eventually got through had a 45 minute interrogation asking lots of irrelevant questions & being treated like an idiot. 5 days until I received the money, then taxed incorrectly - claimed not to have received tax code issued nearly a year ago! SO inefficient. And value has fallen like a stone despite being in low risk fund. Reviewed on: 5th March 2022

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