A marked upward trend for pension sales, partly fuelled by auto-enrolment and an equally marked downward trend in ISA sales are two of the main observations to arise from the FCA’s Retail Product Sale Data published today.

According to the data SIPP sales have hit 250,000 in Q2 2018 up from 200,000 in Q4 2017 and group personal pension sales have hit 225,000, remaining stable in the same period. ISA sales are at around 75,000 for Q2 2018.

“The era of low interest rates has put pressure on cash ISA sales and they’re some way off their 2010 peak, despite repeated increases to the amount people can save tax free in ISAs, Aegon pensions director Steven Cameron stated.

“Many savers have been tempted away from ISAs towards bank accounts paying higher rates of interest, which now also benefit from tax exemptions, but as interest rates start to creep up it will be interesting to see whether cash ISAs find their way back into favour.

“Following the introduction of RDR and the ban on paying for advice through commission, non-advised personal pension sales spiked. But in the years since, advised sales have gradually been closing the gap. This is an endorsement of the value of advice as for many people decisions about which pension to select, how to invest and how much to contribute are too important to make without the support of an adviser who can reassure and give customers confidence that they’re making the best decisions to meet their long term saving goals.”

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