The Pension Confident Podcast

For the first time ever, fewer than half of UK adults are married or in a civil partnership, yet the law hasn't caught up with how many of us now live together instead. So, legally and financially, is it still worth getting married?
Join our host, Philippa Lamb, and our expert panel as they discuss whether marriage still pays off financially and legally, and what unmarried couples need to put in place instead:
Financial Planner, Mike Donkor;
Solicitor and Partner at Collyer Bristow, Philippa Dolan; and
Chief Marketing Officer at PensionBee, Jasper Martens.
 
Episode breakdown
01:18 Why marriage rates are falling
05:44 The financial perks of marriage
09:04 When unmarried couples split
12:41 Avoiding the money conversation
16:20 How are pensions shared
19:28 Who gets the pets?
21:15 Protecting your partner with a will
24:22 Cohabitation Agreements and annual reviews
28:48 A fairer end to relationships
 
Further reading and listening
To learn more about managing money in a couple, check out these articles and podcasts from PensionBee:
Episode transcript (Blog)
E14: What's the impact of your relationship status on your finances? (Podcast)
E35: The cost of divorce (Podcast)
How does divorce or remarrying affect your pension? (Article)
Pension beneficiaries (Article)
Six money conversations you need to have with your family (Blog)
Why pensions deserve your attention during divorce (Blog)
Writing a will (Article)

 
Other useful resources
A fairer end to relationships: consultation (GOV.UK)
Capital Gains Tax allowances (GOV.UK)
Cohabitation Agreement guidance (The Law Society)
Families and households in the UK (Office for National Statistics)
Inheritance Tax (GOV.UK)
Marriage Allowance (GOV.UK)
 
Catch up on the latest news, read our transcripts or watch on YouTube:
The Pension Confident Podcast
The Pension Confident Podcast on YouTube
Follow PensionBee (@PensionBee) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Threads.
Follow Collyer Bristow (@Collyer_Bristow) on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and X.
Follow Mike Donkor (@michaelgdonkor) on TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.
 
Enjoying the podcast? Tell us what you think below and give us a review or rating. As always we'd love to hear your suggestions and feedback. Send us an email: podcast@pensionbee.com.

In this bonus episode, we hear from PensionBee customer Sally as she shares her pension story. From decades of putting money into living over saving, and losing her husband suddenly in his 40s, to retirement in her 60s and choosing a pension plan that truly reflects her values.
We unpack Sally's pension journey with pensions expert Veronica Morozova from PensionBee, covering:
why financially literate people still don't save;
how emotional barriers can be a bigger obstacle than lack of information;
the tax benefits of saving into a pension; and
what values-based investing actually means in practice.
 
Episode breakdown
00:39 Meet Sally
02:48 'Present bias' and money
06:10 Tax efficiency in retirement
10:11 Values-based investing
 
Further reading
To learn more about the topics discussed in this bonus episode, check out these articles from PensionBee:
Climate Plan (Web)
What do heatwaves have to do with your pension? (Blog)
What is a crystallised pension? (Article)
What is flexi-access drawdown? (Article)
Why reaching net zero is cheaper than doing nothing and what it could mean for your pension (Blog)
 
Other useful resources
Pension Calculator (PensionBee)
Retirement Living Standards (Pensions UK)
Taking money from your pension just got simpler with Automatic withdrawals (PensionBee)
The new State Pension (GOV.UK)
 
Catch up on the latest news, read our transcripts or watch on YouTube:
The Pension Confident Podcast
The Pension Confident Podcast on YouTube
Follow PensionBee (@PensionBee) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Threads.
 
Enjoying the podcast? Tell us what you think below and give us a review or rating. As always we'd love to hear your suggestions and feedback. Send us an email: podcast@pensionbee.com.

Market volatility is back in the headlines, and if you've noticed your pension balance moving up and down, you're not alone. From tariffs to geopolitical tensions, there's no shortage of reasons to feel uneasy. But before you rush to make any changes, it's worth understanding how volatility actually works and why, more often than not, staying put is the smartest move.
Join our host, Philippa Lamb, and VP Personal Finance at PensionBee, Maike Currie as they discuss:
what market volatility is and what drives it;
why pension pots are more resilient than you might think, and how quickly markets have historically recovered;
why keeping up contributions during a downturn can actually work in your favour; and
how to check whether you're in the right plan for your life stage.
 
Episode breakdown
00:49 What's market volatility?
03:21 How far can a pension balance fall?
05:25 The investor upside of a market downturn
08:32 How quickly can markets recover?
09:55 Pension plans for different life stages
 
Further reading and listening
To learn more about investing and stock markets, check out these articles and podcasts from PensionBee:
Bonus episode: How much can you contribute into your pension each year? (Podcast)
E39: Trump, tariffs and what it all means for your pension (Podcast)
Markets and tariffs: what's going on and what it means (Blog)
Switching plans in volatile markets: what to know (Blog)
The power of regular contributions in volatile markets (Blog)
Understanding market volatility and pensions (Blog)
What is the stock market? (Article)
 
Other useful resources
Bull and bear markets explained (Investopedia)
Fed History Overview (Federal Reserve History)
Our pension plans (PensionBee)
 
Catch up on the latest news, read our transcripts or watch on YouTube:
The Pension Confident Podcast
The Pension Confident Podcast on YouTube
Follow PensionBee (@PensionBee) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Threads.
 
Enjoying the podcast? Tell us what you think below and give us a review or rating. As always we'd love to hear your suggestions and feedback. Send us an email: podcast@pensionbee.com.

Are you earning more than you were five years ago but still don't feel better off? You might be experiencing 'lifestyle creep'. The subtle way spending expands to quietly swallow every pay rise, bonus, and promotion. From Ocado upgrades and subscription sprawl to beauty routines that keep growing, lifestyle creep is surprisingly easy to fall into and remarkably hard to spot.
Join our host, Philippa Lamb, and our expert panel as they discuss how to identify, resist, and even reverse lifestyle creep:
Content Creator, Clare Seal;
Co-Founder and CEO of Emma, Edoardo Moreni; and
Head of Customer Success Team at PensionBee, Alex Langley.
 
Episode breakdown
01:38 What is lifestyle creep?
05:23 Trigger points and the psychology of spending more
09:41 Supermarket upgrades and the subscription trap
13:17 Being intentional and auditing your spending
16:05 The real pension cost of lifestyle creep
19:20 How to cut back without making life miserable
21:31 Building resilience and talking about money
26:12 Budgeting frameworks and tools that work
 
Further reading, listening and watching
To learn more about lifestyle creep and how to manage your money, check out these articles, podcasts and videos from PensionBee:
E37: The easiest way to retire with more money (Podcast)
50-30-20: How the budgeting 'rule of thumb' is changing in the face of the cost of living crisis (Blog)
How much should I pay into my pension? (Article)
Six ways to put together your emergency fund (Blog)
The power of 1%: how small pension increases can make a big difference (Blog)
What is compound interest? (Video)
Increasing your pension contributions (Video)
 
Other useful resources
Compound Interest Calculator (The Calculator Site)
Pension Calculator (PensionBee)
Subscription service statistics (Finder)
The Retirement Living Standards (Pensions UK)
The Cost of Disengagement (PensionBee)
UK financial outlook 2026 (YouGov)
 
Catch up on the latest news, read our transcripts or watch on YouTube:
The Pension Confident Podcast
The Pension Confident Podcast on YouTube
 
Follow PensionBee (@PensionBee) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Threads.
Follow Clare Seal (@clare.seal) on TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.
Follow Emma App (@emma_finance) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and X.
 
Enjoying the podcast? Tell us what you think below and give us a review or rating. As always we'd love to hear your suggestions and feedback. Send us an email: podcast@pensionbee.com.

In this bonus episode, we hear from PensionBee customer Nigel. Now 76 and retired, he spent decades commuting into Central London, raising two children, and telling himself he'd sort his pension "someday". A bad experience with an active fund manager and an IFA changed all that - and a tip from his son led him to PensionBee.
We unpack Nigel's pension journey with pensions expert Dani Skerrett from PensionBee, covering the tax benefits of saving into a pension, when a financial adviser is (and isn't) worth it, how to think about how much you actually need in retirement, and what life in drawdown really looks like day-to-day.
 
Episode breakdown
00:48 Meet Nigel
03:19 The tax benefits of saving into a pension
06:47 Should you use a financial adviser?
12:11 How much do you actually need for retirement?
16:12 Nigel's life in retirement
 
Further reading and listening 
To learn more about the topics discussed in this bonus episode, check out these articles and podcasts from PensionBee:
E43: Who wants to be a pension millionaire? (Podcast)
E37: The easiest way to retire with more money (Podcast)
4 smart ways to use your ISAs in retirement (Blog)
Independent Financial Adviser fees on pensions (Article)
What is a crystallised pension? (Article)
What is flexi-access drawdown? (Article)
What is the 4% rule for withdrawals in retirement? (Article)
 
Other useful resources
Pension Calculator (PensionBee)
Retirement Living Standards (Pensions UK)
Taking money from your pension just got simpler with Automatic withdrawals (PensionBee)
The new State Pension (GOV.UK)
 
Catch up on the latest news, read our transcripts or watch on YouTube:
The Pension Confident Podcast
The Pension Confident Podcast on YouTube
Follow PensionBee (@PensionBee) on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Threads.
Enjoying the podcast? Tell us what you think below and give us a review or rating. As always we'd love to hear your suggestions and feedback. Send us an email: podcast@pensionbee.com.