Telegraph article - How much drawdown should I take

There's no magic number for this unfortunately as everybody's financial situation is different, as is their spending requirements.

A good starting point is to look at what you want to spend each month, and then work backwards to see where this will come from. It's then a case of working out if this would be sustainable and for how long, using some realistic assumptions for things like inflaton, growth, tax and life expectancy. Also a plan for what will happen in years where the stock market is down and the value of the pension pot has fallen, sometimes significantly.

Most people don't want to take a significant drop in their lifestyle when they retire so start with what it'd cost to keep things as they are.

Remeber to factor in any other income you may get in retirement like the state pension, final salary pensions or rental income.

These factors all go into how much could/should be taken from a drawdown pension, which is often different year-on-year.

Many clients split thier drawdown account in two. The income they require for the next five years is retained in low risk assets, whils the remainder is in a growth fund. The amount of income they take will be determined my market conditions over the preceeding five years. Some clients start, but using the 4% rule, but this is a crude measure of sustainability and investments and income need to be reviewed regularly. Fixed term annuities are playing a role in some drawdown plans, as clients look to hedge the higher than normal rates currently avalible.