The spread of Pink finance readership is as far as it is wide. There's no greater illustration of this than age. We've received many emails from people 50 years and older, with questions about their changing circumstances. We are answering some of the most frequent questions.

State Provision

You will receive basic state pension from the official state pension age, which is currently 60 for women and 65 for men. For women born after 6th April 1950 this is going to rise to 65 from 2020. The change is made gradually from 2010.

A man must have paid national insurance for 44 years to receive a full state pension, and women 39. There are a number of options to help those who may not have paid enough contributions. If you've been bringing up children, or looking after an elderly relative this will be taken into consideration. Any periods claiming incapacity or job seekers allowance will also be credited.

SERPS were started in 1978 to provide additional pension to employees, over and above the basic state pension. Anyone earning above £78 per week, should be building up a SERPS pension. SERPS pensions are linked to your earnings, with the more you earn, the more entitlement you build up. If you're a member of a 'Contracted Out' employer's scheme, you are automatically contracted out of SERPS. It's not best for everyone to be out of SERPS and advice should be sought on this matter. 

Investing

National Savings are government-backed savings, and are a safe option for many investors. There are four types of National Savings: Investments, which pay regular income, Guaranteed Fixed Rate investments, Tax Free investments and Basic Savings Accounts. All National Savings accounts are capital secured and you will be guaranteed to get your capital back. However, whilst these are safe, you may not be getting the highest return.

Collective Investments such as ISA's and Unit Trusts are not without risk. Some of these investments come with a government Cat-mark, which refers to the terms the investment is offered under, not the level of risk. The level of risk can be managed by selecting a sensible spread of assets and carefully managed funds. This is something an Independent Financial Adviser could help you with, who will ask you series of questions to assess your attitudes. Your attitudes towards your money may change at different stages of your life.

Remember to take advantage of your annual ISA allowance, either through a lump sum or regular savings. These are tax-free limits and will be lost if not used before the 6th April each year. 

IHT and Equity Release

Tax is paid on your estate above £250,000, but this can be whittled down before you die by making gifts of up to £250 to any number of people within the tax year, up to £3,000 per person. Gifts of any size fall out of your estate for tax purposes if they are made more than seven years before the event. Or if you make sure your home is made out on a joint tenancy basis, the transfer of your half of the property is automatically transferred to your partner tax-free.

Equity release schemes are sometimes used to create a liability within the estate. Loan type schemes allow you to retain partnership of your home while releasing part of the property's value to give a lump sum payment. Interest is charged on the loan, but is not payable until death or the house is sold.

A reversion scheme would allow you to sell all or part of your home in return for either a regular income or lump sum. Whichever scheme you choose, you will be entitled to live in the property until either you die or move to a residential home. 

Health

Private Medical Insurance can be expensive, but another option is a hospital cash plan that pays a sum for everyday you require hospital treatment, either as a day patient or inpatient at an NHS or private hospital. Some plans will also offer cover for dental treatment, but you need to be aware that no cash plan will offer the range of benefits under a PMI plan.

Alternatively, you could look at PMI schemes that offer excess options, so you meet a proportion of the bill, with the insurer picking up the rest. These schemes offer some level of cover at reduced premium rates. 

Long Term Care Plans will meet the cost of care whether this is in a residential or nursing home, or in your own home. The cost of Long-Term Care insurance increases with age, so the sooner you start thinking about it, the cheaper it will be. People who start paying cover at 55 rather than 65 could find that their monthly premiums are half the price.

If in doubt about any of the areas above you should contact an Independent Financial Adviser. If you're approaching retirement or are about to retire, it may be a good time to review your options and make sure your future is secure. 

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