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Identifying your
pension pots

Illustration of woman potting a plant

It’s easy to lose track of your workplace pension pots as you change jobs throughout your life. But your old pots are still out there waiting for you.

There is currently more than £31.1 billion held in unclaimed pension pots in the UK. Make sure your money isn’t adding to that number.

Discover how to identify all your pension pots, why it’s important and what to do when you find them.

How do I find my pension pots?

  1. Talk to your previous pension providers, if you know who they are. MoneyHelper has a useful pension-tracing letter template to help you do this.
  2. If you’re trying to find a workplace pension, then speak to your former employer. MoneyHelper has another template to help you.
  3. If you don’t have the details for a past pension provider or employer, The Pension Tracing Service should be able to help. This free service searches a database of more than 200,000 workplace and personal pensions schemes to help you find the contact details you need. Find out more about the service on the gov.uk website.

Can I find all my pensions?

Yes. The UK’s free Pension Tracing Service can help you track down a missing workplace or personal pension. You provide your old employer's details, and they search for the scheme(s) you were enrolled in.

Can I find my pensions with my national insurance number?

Along with other personal details, knowing your National Insurance number will help old employers and pension schemes identify you. They'll then be able to let you know about any pension savings you saved with them.

Four reasons to track down your pension pots

1

You wouldn’t forget about money in a bank account, so why forget about the money in your pension pot? It’s just as real, and it’s yours. Plus, it might have grown to be worth more than you think. Imagine how useful that extra money could be when you retire.

2

Once you know your total savings, you’ll be in a better position to work out how much money you’re likely to have when you retire. Then you can decide whether to adjust your contributions.

3

Combining your pots could help you reduce fees and make managing your money easier. This can be especially useful as you approach retirement age and start accessing your pots.

4

Tracking down your old pots now means one less thing to worry about when you retire. Having everything in order ahead of time helps make your transition into retirement smoother.

Finding pensions FAQs

How do I find out if I have a pension?

All UK employers must provide a workplace pension scheme by law. So, if you’ve had a job in the UK, you’ve probably got a pension. The Pension Tracing Service is the best place to start tracking it down. By providing some details about yourself and your previous employment, the service will help to uncover any pensions you might not know about.

How to find my Nest pension?

If you’ve a Nest pension, we’ll have sent you a welcome pack shortly after your employer put you into the scheme.

You can view your Nest pension by logging in to your online account. You’ll need to provide your National Insurance number when you log in for the first time. If you’re having difficulty, you can contact us and we’ll help you find your Nest pot.