InShort

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Pensioners 'hurt by lack of knowledge'

A lack of financial knowledge among pension holders could hurt their level of income in retirement, according to a study by the Irish Association of Pension Funds.

The study points to the power that members of defined contribution pension schemes have to pick their own investment strategy. Association chairman Joe Byrne said the study found that those members did not feel confident to make such decisions or were not interested enough to do so.

The association said there was a lack of understanding of investment issues and that some trustees of pension schemes were reluctant to get involved with modern investment strategies.

BMW and Mini insurance offer

BMW and Mini drivers can now avail of specially tailored insurance cover developed by the luxury car manufacturer in conjunction with insurer Eagle Star.

Under the policy, all repairs will be carried out by BMW- or Mini-approved bodyshops. BMW Group Ireland said this ensured that cars would be restored to an "as new" condition following any damage and that the manufacturer's warranty would not be affected, which may not be the case with non-approved repairs.

Rabo offers fund discount entry

RaboDirect.ie is offering a discounted entry charge on the Henderson Horizon Pan European Property Equities Fund, as part of its December fund-of-the- month promotion.

The entry fee to the medium- to high-risk fund will be reduced to 0.25 per cent, down from 0.75 per cent, for this month. The minimum investment is €100 and the fund manager's fee is 1.2 per cent. There is also an exit fee of 0.75 per cent.