Some of the country’s biggest employers are currently burdened by some of the biggest pension scheme deficits, it has been revealed.
Recently, the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) reported that rallies in the global stock markets helped the UK’s 7,400 defined benefit pension schemes cut their shortfalls markedly over the past couple of months.
The schemes now have a collective deficit of around £15.1 billion, compared to the figure of £51.9 billion recorded at the start of the year.
At the same time, however, a new report from Hymans Robertson has revealed that some of the biggest employers in the financial sector are still suffering from disproportionately large pension scheme deficits, the London Evening Standard has reported.
The size of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s pension scheme deficit represents 69 per cent of its stock market valuation, while other large employers, including Lloyds, are also very much in the red.
News of the pensions shortfall, which could prompt many workers approaching retirement to look into equity release scheme possibilities, comes soon after the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) revealed that fewer than 40 schemes have been awarded its mark of quality in the past six months.
Posted by Tom Papworth 
