Lost track of an old workplace pension? You're not alone

Every time you changed jobs, there's a decent chance a workplace pension was opened for you — and if you've moved house since, the provider may have lost you. The Association of British Insurers has estimated billions of pounds sit in lost UK pots. Most people we speak to can name their current pension. Very few can name all of them.

The government's free Pension Tracing Service (gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details) finds contact details for old workplace and personal schemes — you just need employer names and rough dates. Old paperwork, P60s and even LinkedIn job history help. Once you have the provider's details, a short letter of authority lets an adviser gather the plan details on your behalf.

Why it matters: you can't plan around money you can't see. Getting every pot on one page — balances, charges, how each is invested — is the unglamorous first step behind almost every good retirement decision. It's also one of the first things an adviser will help you do, and exactly the kind of detail worth mentioning in your free retirement check.