u/Away_Drawer_3349

Looking for a sense check on my setup and whether I’m missing any obvious wins.

My situation:
Mid to late 30s, married, wife has her own pension separately.

Three pots currently:
Workplace pension 1 (L&G), around £44k, in a 2050 to 2055 target date lifestyle fund.

Workplace pension 2 (L&G, from a previous employer), around £16k, just switched from a Lifestyle Cash Target profile to Drawdown Target since I don’t want a cash lump sum (or do I?!? 🧐)

Older personal pension (Scottish Widows), around £17.5k, selected retirement age 65, still checking the exact fund risk level.

Goal: retire somewhere between 63 and 65, aiming for a moderate lifestyle in retirement (PLSA Retirement Living Standards terms) rather than minimum or luxury.

On the State Pension side, my forecast doesn’t pay out until my late 60s, so there’s a real gap between when I’d like to stop working and when that kicks in. I’ve also got some missing years on my National Insurance record, a few from university and a few from a period working abroad when I was young, when I wasn’t thinking about pensions and didn’t pay any stamps. Missed the catchup window unless they extend again but realistically didn’t seem like a good ROI in hindsight.

What I’m trying to work out:
Since I’m still 25 plus years out, does it make sense to move away from the automatic lifestyle/target date funds toward something higher risk and pure equity for now and only start de-risking manually closer to retirement?

Is it worth consolidating all three pots into one provider, and if so what should I check for first (exit charges, guarantees) before transferring an older pot?

Any experience with L&G Lifestyle Drawdown Target worth knowing now I’ve made the switch?

Is it worth trying to fill any of those old NI gaps at this point, or has that ship sailed?

Anything else people in a similar position wish they’d done earlier?

Also currently taking my bonus as cash rather than sacrificing it into my pension. I know the tax, NI and student loan repayments eat a big chunk of it, but I’ve needed the cash in hand recently. Wondering if there’s a middle ground I’m missing, like sacrificing part of it, or if this is just a fair trade off given where I am right now.

Thanks in advance, happy to share more detail if it’s useful.

A few weeks in I started noticing the nearside looked off. Pinker, duller, sort of matte compared to the offside. Kept telling myself it was the light, because that paint does weird things in the sun. My dad saw it too. Took it to a bodyshop this week and they confirmed it in writing: the entire nearside has been resprayed, badly, blended from the rear bumper all the way through to the front bumper and bonnet. Seven panels. Four figures to put right.

None of it was disclosed. The advert said the car was “presented in excellent condition both inside and out” and made no mention of any repair. When I raised a separate smaller issue earlier, the guy on the phone told me “these are second hand cars, they all are expected to have some faults.”

I’m not trying to hand the car back. I actually really like driving it. I just want it put right and I don’t think I should be paying for it. Writing to them under the Consumer Rights Act this week.

I suppose I’m asking: is this something I should have caught? It was parked in shadow on their forecourt when I viewed it and honestly I didn’t see it for weeks after I got it home either. It’s only now the sun has been properly on it that the nearside reads pink rather than red. Or is a well blended full side respray just genuinely not something you spot in a car park?