The Consumer Advisory Association of Germany (VZBV) welcomed the changes to the Riester pension reform that the Union and SPD agreed on Tuesday.
Ramona Pop, VZBV’s spokesperson, called the agreement a “milestone for consumers” and a “good day for everyone who needs to plan private retirement security”. She added that finally there will be a standard product available to all that is low‑cost and aims for high returns. “From now on the focus must be on making the new standard product and its access as consumer‑friendly as possible” she said.
The federal government had stated in its coalition agreement that the Riester pension should be replaced by a new savings product, including an optional simplified standard version. In the draft bill, providers were still allowed to create their own standard products and sell them for commissions.
The missing central standard product was omitted from the December draft, but the Union and SPD amended the proposal on Tuesday. In addition to private offers, a cheap, centrally managed standard product will be introduced to serve as a benchmark for private offers and allow consumers to secure their retirement easily.
The VZBV has campaigned for more than a decade to replace the Riester pension with a state‑run standard product modeled on the Swedish system.