Pension tracing service
What to do if you think you have a pension scheme but you aren’t sure
If you think that you have a pension from a previous job or perhaps a personal pension then you need to use a pension tracing service.
Pension tracing services take basic personal information that you provide and use official government databases to find the details of any pension schemes held in your name. You will then receive a letter from the Pensions Tracing Service (part of the Pension Service – a government body) with all the details.
The process is very simple and can be completed directly at this website by completing the form to the right of this page. We will check the details that you have provided and clear up any questions. Your details will then be forwarded to the Pension Tracing Service for processing. This typically takes up to two weeks.
You will never be charged for this service.
You need to know that this service is undertaken at least partly manually so there is the possibility for error. That’s why we check the information that is provided first and look for common errors and things that will help the process generate the right result for you first time.
Information that you will need when using the Pension Tracing Service
In order to trace a pension, we always need to know:
- Your full name
- Your date of birth
- Your National Insurance number
- Your current contact information
Then, the information we need will depend on whether you are trying to trace a personal pension or a company pension.
If you are looking for a company pension, then tell us as much as you can about:
- The name of the company
- Any other trading names you know of that the company used
- What sort of business the company ran
- Any address information you have for the company
- When you were in the scheme
Now we appreciate that you might not know all of this, so we ask that you just tell us what you can. We’ll do our best, and if we are really stuck, we’ll give a quick call just to clarify any details.
If it’s a personal pension that you are looking for, then tell us what you can about:
- The name of the pension scheme
- The address the scheme was run from (ie the address of the pension company)
- The name of the bank, or building society that your payments went to (your bank should be able to tell you this)
What information will I get from the Pension Tracing Service?
The letter you receive back will list any pensions that are in your name with the contact information that they have on file.
Is this everything that I need?
It depends what you need the information for, but the information that you get back from The Pensions Tracing Service is quite basic. It won’t tell you:
- What pension – if any you are entitled to
- The security of your pension
- The risks of your current pension scheme
- The cash value of your pension if you are thinking of selling
- The transfer value of your pension
- Any better options for your current pension
What will the Pension Tracing Service do with my data?
The Pension Tracing Service are not allowed to share the details of your request with any third party, so you don’t need to worry about HMRC or anybody else getting hold of your details and using it against you somehow.
Whilst you wait for your letter from the Pension Tracing Service, we will also send you a quick guide explaining what to do with the information that you receive back from them. Our simple guide will provide you with
Why don’t I file my data directly with the Pension Tracing Service?
You can, there’s nothing to stop you. In fact here’s the link. However, you won’t get the benefit of any of the free information that we have available for you, so I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s your choice though, but really it doesn’t make any sense because:
- If you enter any of the data wrong, you’ll have to wait for your application to be processed before you know, whereas we check it straight away
- We’ve prepared a free guide for you that explains the information that the Pensions Trace Service provide. Your pensions data will make much more sense with it than without it
- We don’t charge a thing
- We would never abuse your personal information
Fill in the form to the right and we’ll get started for you. 
