Ian Burrows, Director and Chartered Financial Planner, tells us about one of his most rewarding client journeys.
He fully enjoyed helping the client achieve their retirement planning objectives.
The case
This case study follows a client whose job required significant travel commitments along with long working hours in a stressful environment. He was due to inherit a sum of money which presented an opportunity to map out his ideal retirement plans.
The first step was to discuss his objectives. After many years of hard work, our client and his partner needed change. They dreamt of buying a campervan and touring the world while working, occasionally, if needed.
Using our cash flow method, we were able to break down the key components:
- how much income they needed to live comfortably;
- what they would do with their home;
- how to make their existing pensions work for them; and
- where they would stay when visiting family in the UK.
From this, we could create a year-by-year assessment of how to meet their needs and wants.
They would have suffered penalties if they accessed their defined benefit pension schemes early, so we factored in overspending funded by capital. For the first 10 years, we spent capital and used the money to purchase pension schemes. After this decade, their defined benefit scheme income began and, in the last few years, their State Pensions became available. By making use of tax benefits and adhering to this timeline, they now have more than enough income to live as they wished.
As a result, our client and his partner have spent the past 15 years travelling extensively and ticking off their bucket list. They have endured through the 2008 financial crisis as well as the COVID-19 turmoil by adapting their plans during their biannual meetings with Ian.
From Ian’s point of view, he has enjoyed every meeting and has listened, with enthusiasm, to the tales of their adventures. For him, his small helping hand in making all of this happen is what the job is about.
