How to Trace Lost Pensions in the UK (2026/27)

Trace lost UK pensions 2026/27 with the free government Pension Tracing Service. What to search, what it does not do, checking State Pension and avoiding scams.

2026/27 tax year

Pensions & Retirement
UK-wide

Lost track of a pension from an old job? You are far from alone. This guide shows you how to trace workplace and personal pensions using the free government Pension Tracing Service, exactly what details you need, what to do once you find a scheme, why your State Pension is checked separately, and how the coming Pensions Dashboards will change things. It also flags the paid "tracing" firms and pension scams to avoid. Everything here traces to gov.uk, MoneyHelper, the Pensions Dashboards Programme, the FCA and the Pensions Policy Institute.

Lost pensions in numbers

Lost pension pots

3.3m

Estimated across the UK (PPI, 2024)

Total value

£31.1bn

Unclaimed / lost (PPI, 2024)

Average lost pot

£9,470

Up to £13,620 for ages 55-75

Source: Pensions Policy Institute, Lost Pensions 2024 (Briefing Note 138), published 24 October 2024, reported by the Association of British Insurers. Pots go missing mainly because people change jobs and move house without telling their old schemes.

Why pensions get lost

Losing track of a pension is rarely carelessness - it is a by-product of how modern working life and auto-enrolment work:

Frequent job changes. The average worker has many employers over a career. Each job can leave behind a separate workplace pension you no longer contribute to.
Auto-enrolment created lots of small pots. Since 2012, employers must automatically enrol eligible staff into a pension. Short stints and part-time roles have generated millions of small "deferred" pots that are easy to forget.
You moved house. If you did not tell an old scheme your new address, its statements stop reaching you and the pension effectively drops off your radar - even though it is still yours and still invested.
Providers merge or rebrand. Pension companies get bought and renamed, so the name on your old paperwork may not match the firm holding your money today.

None of this means the money is gone. A deferred pension keeps your name and National Insurance number on it - you just need to reconnect. That is what tracing does.

The free government Pension Tracing Service

The Pension Tracing Service is run by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and is completely free. It holds a large database of UK workplace and personal pension schemes.

What it DOES

Returns the current contact details for a workplace or personal pension scheme.
Lets you search by former employer name or by pension provider name.
Works for your own pensions, or someone else's if you have their permission.
Costs nothing to use.

What it does NOT do

It will not tell you whether you actually have a pension.
It will not tell you what a pension is worth.
It does not cover your State Pension (check that separately).
It does not contact the scheme for you - that next step is yours.

In the words of the service itself: "This service will not tell you whether you have a pension, or what its value is." It gives you the door - you knock on it.

What details you need to search

To use the tracing tool, you need just one thing: the name of a former employer or a pension provider. That is enough to pull back contact details.

To then actually claim the pension, the scheme will need to match its records to you, so gather these before you contact them:

Your National Insurance number (the main reference the scheme uses to find your record).
The dates you worked there or were a scheme member.
Any policy or membership numbers from old statements or letters.
Your previous addresses and names (for example a maiden name or a name used at the time).
Your date of birth.

Tip: dig out old payslips, P60s, joining letters and annual pension statements first. They often name the scheme or provider outright, which can save a tracing search altogether. MoneyHelper's free guide walks through the same paperwork-first approach.

What to do once you find a scheme

Contact the scheme. Write or call using the details the tracing service gave you. Quote your National Insurance number, dates of membership and any old policy numbers.
Ask for an up-to-date statement. Request the current value, the type of pension (defined contribution pot or defined benefit / final salary), and your projected retirement income.
Update your details. Give the scheme your current address and nominate (or refresh) your beneficiaries, so statements reach you and the money goes to the right people.
Check the benefits carefully before moving anything. Older pensions can carry valuable features - guaranteed annuity rates, protected pension ages, or defined benefit promises - that you would lose by transferring out. Do not rush a consolidation decision.
Take regulated advice for big or complex pots. For defined benefit transfers above the legal threshold, regulated financial advice is a legal requirement. Use only an FCA-authorised adviser.

Once you can see all your pots, you can decide whether to leave them where they are or bring them together. Our pension consolidation guide covers the trade-offs.

Your State Pension is separate - check the forecast

The Pension Tracing Service covers workplace and personal pensions only. It will not tell you anything about your State Pension. To see how much State Pension you could get and when you can claim it, use the separate free government service at gov.uk/check-state-pension.

The forecast is based on your National Insurance record and is the quickest way to see your entitlement. It also flags whether you have gaps in your record that you might be able to fill. Check both sides of your retirement picture: your State Pension forecast, plus every workplace and personal pension you trace.

Want to model the numbers? Try our State Pension calculator to estimate your weekly and annual figure from your qualifying years.

Pensions Dashboards - what is coming

The government-backed Pensions Dashboards programme is designed to let you see all your pensions, including your State Pension, together in one secure online place - matched to you using details such as your National Insurance number.

Schemes must connect by 31 October 2026. Under the Pensions Dashboards Regulations, occupational schemes and pension providers have a legal connection deadline of 31 October 2026, reached in a staged timetable.
No public launch date is confirmed yet. The connection deadline is not the same as the "Dashboards Available Point" - the moment dashboards open to the public. That point is set by the government only after schemes have connected and testing is complete, so a consumer launch is expected later, not on the connection deadline itself.
Until then, trace manually. Use the free Pension Tracing Service and check your State Pension forecast separately, as set out above.

Source: UK Pensions Dashboards Programme and the gov.uk staged connection timetable.

Avoid paid tracing firms and pension scams

Because tracing is genuinely valuable, it attracts firms who want to charge for it - and outright fraudsters. Two things to keep separate in your mind:

Paid "tracing" firms

Some companies offer to trace or "reunite" you with lost pensions for a fee, or in exchange for a slice of your pot. They are doing what the government Pension Tracing Service does for free. Unless you specifically want to buy regulated financial advice, you do not need to pay anyone to run a search - use gov.uk or the free MoneyHelper guidance.

Pension scams (FCA warning signs)

Scammers often approach people who have just found or consolidated pensions. The FCA warns to watch for:

Cold calls about your pension. Pension cold-calling is illegal. If you get an unexpected call about your pension, the safest thing is to hang up - it is probably a scam.
"Free pension review" offers. The FCA is clear that professional advice on pensions is not free; an unsolicited free review is a common hook to move your money into high-risk schemes.
Guaranteed or unusually high returns. A promise of a "guaranteed better return" or unusual, unregulated investments is a red flag.
High-pressure sales tactics and complicated structures where it is not clear where your money ends up.

Before acting on any pension offer, check the firm on the FCA register and read the FCA's how to avoid pension scams guidance.

Pension consolidation guide - whether and how to bring traced pots together.
State Pension calculator - estimate your weekly and annual State Pension from your qualifying years.
Pension comparison guide - State Pension vs workplace pension vs SIPP side by side.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find a lost pension in the UK?

Use the free government Pension Tracing Service at gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details, run by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Enter the name of a former employer or a pension provider and it returns the scheme's up-to-date contact details. It does not tell you whether you have a pension or what it is worth - you then contact the scheme yourself to request a statement. It is completely free, so never pay a private firm to do this for you. Your State Pension is separate: check that forecast at gov.uk/check-state-pension.

Is the Pension Tracing Service free?

Yes. The Pension Tracing Service is provided free of charge by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) at gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details. It holds a large database of workplace and personal pension schemes and gives you the scheme's contact details so you can get in touch yourself. Some private companies charge a fee (or take a percentage of your pot) to do exactly the same search, or to "reunite" you with pensions - you do not need to pay anyone. Use the official gov.uk service or the free MoneyHelper guidance instead.

How do I track down old workplace pensions?

Start with your own paperwork: old payslips, P60s, joining letters and annual pension statements often name the scheme or provider. If you cannot find those, contact the former employer or a former colleague to get the pension provider's name. If the employer no longer exists or you have no records, use the free government Pension Tracing Service at gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details - search by employer name or provider name and it returns current contact details. Then write to or call the scheme, quote your National Insurance number and any old membership or policy numbers, and ask for an up-to-date statement.

Can I find a pension with my National Insurance number?

Not by itself. The government Pension Tracing Service searches by employer name or pension provider name, not by National Insurance number, so you cannot type in your NI number and get a list of all your pensions today. However, once you have found and contacted a scheme, your National Insurance number is the key reference the provider uses to locate your record, so have it ready. In future the government Pensions Dashboards service is designed to match your pensions to you using details including your NI number - but it is not yet available to the public.

What details do I need to trace a lost pension?

The government Pension Tracing Service only needs the name of a former employer or a pension provider to return contact details. To then claim the pension, the scheme will ask for identifying details, so gather what you can beforehand: your National Insurance number, your dates of employment or scheme membership, any policy or membership numbers, your previous addresses and names (for example a maiden name), and your date of birth. The more you can supply, the faster the scheme can match its records to you and issue a statement.

Is checking my State Pension the same as tracing workplace pensions?

No, they are separate. The Pension Tracing Service covers workplace and personal pensions only - it will not tell you about your State Pension. To see how much State Pension you could get and when you can claim it, use the separate free service at gov.uk/check-state-pension, which gives you a personalised forecast based on your National Insurance record. Check both: your State Pension forecast and each workplace or personal pension, to see your full retirement picture.

What are Pensions Dashboards and when can I use one?

Pensions Dashboards are a government-backed programme that will let you see all your pensions, including your State Pension, in one secure online place. Pension schemes and providers are legally required to connect to the system, with a final connection deadline of 31 October 2026 under the Pensions Dashboards Regulations. There is no confirmed public launch date yet - dashboards only become available to consumers once the government sets a "Dashboards Available Point" after schemes have connected and testing is complete. Until then, use the free Pension Tracing Service and check your State Pension forecast separately.

How much money is sitting in lost pension pots?

A lot. The Pensions Policy Institute's Lost Pensions 2024 research, published in October 2024 and reported by the Association of British Insurers, estimated there were around 3.3 million lost pension pots in the UK worth about £31.1 billion in total - an average of roughly £9,470 per lost pot, rising to about £13,620 for people aged 55 to 75. Lost pensions are common because people change jobs and move house without updating their old schemes. Tracing yours could reconnect you with meaningful retirement savings, so it is worth checking.