Sipp Spotlight: Lifting the lid on Pointon York

Total Sipp assets £947 million

Average size of individual Sipp £167,000

Capital held in excess of regulatory requirement Undisclosed

Who are the owners of the business?

Pointon York Group is controlled by Geoffrey Pointon.

Available investments

Pointon York has a number of bespoke e-Sipps available through platforms and discretionary fund managers. For example, it has relationships with True Potential, Caerus, Primetime, Carbon Advice Group and Fusion. All assets on the e-SIPP must be held via one of these platforms.

Charges

Establishment nil

Annual administration £150

Contributions

Single contribution £30

Setup of regular contributions £30

Transfers

Transfer in nil

Transfer in drawdown £75

Transfer out £100

Annuity/drawdown benefits

Establish drawdown £225

Review of drawdown £165

Annuity purchase £175

Annual pension income fee £195

Distribution of death benefits From £300

Adviser view

Mark Stone

Client services director, Whitechurch Financial Consultants

We decide which Sipp to use on a client-by-client basis rather than by segment. However, we believe a minimum amount a client should have to open a Sipp is £100,000. Their money is then put into a portfolio invested by a discretionary fund manager (DFM).

Few clients have taken the commercial property route with their Sipp. Many are looking for a DFM because in these times it is becoming more difficult for them to fulfil their income needs on their own, so they need someone with experience, knowledge and time.

Also, they are usually at or approaching retirement and are professionals, not business owners.

The e-Sipp suits their needs in all those respects and, compared with similar products, it is competitive on cost.

We go direct to Pointon York, so we do not use a platform to access the e-Sipp. However, the relationship between us and Pointon York is very low touch. The most important thing is when any money goes into the Sipp, Pointon York sends it to us quickly after it has cleared, so we can invest it as soon as possible.

If the client does not use the discretionary service, we may not even put them in a Sipp, using a personal pension plan instead.