Defined benefit transfer values ended up 15 per cent at the end of December 2016, according to the Xafinity Transfer Value Index.

The total value increased from around £203,000 at 31 December 2015 to just over £234,000 at 31 December 2016.

Over the last month of the year, the Index rose by almost 2 per cent, recovering some losses from the previous month.

Xafinity head of proposition development Paul Darlow explained: “2016 was a dramatic year for transfer values. The impact of financial conditions has been significant, and this appears to have been a material consideration for IFAs and pension scheme members. It feels like there has been an increase in transfer activity since the Brexit vote, and I have seen some extremely large transfers being paid out recently. Increasingly “partial transfers” are being requested by members, and it seems likely that more and more schemes will need to consider whether or not this is something that they wish to offer.”

At the end of November 2016, DB transfer values dropped by 3.5 per cent on the previous month to £230,000.

The index tracks the transfer value that would be provided by an example DB scheme to a member aged 64 who is currently entitled to a pension of £10,000 each year starting at age 65 (and which increases each year in line with inflation).

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