Picking the right pension product and the right fund manager/ managers is crucial for anyone investing in a pension fund.

According to the latest Irish Times pension fund survey, over the last 15 years the difference between the best and the worst unit-linked fund investment performance was 4.5 per cent per annum.

New Ireland emerged as the top performer in unit-liked pension funds, generating the strongest results over 10, 15 and 20 years. Over 10 years, fund managers at New Ireland turned a £20,000 (€25,395) pension fund (annual contributions of £2,000 per annum over 10 years) into a fund with a value of £44,513. This represents a net yield of 14.17 per cent per annum.

Over 15 and 20 years New Ireland also outperformed its competitors in the unit-linked area, generating returns of 14.46 per cent per annum and 15.6 per cent respectively.

Only two with-profits funds delivered a higher rate of return. GRE Life was the top performer in this area and the overall top pension fund performer over 15 and 20 years. It produced returns of 14.72 per cent and 16.01 per cent per annum respectively.

For example £30,000 invested with GRE over 15 years (contributions of £2,000 per annum) would have grown into a fund worth £106,652 while a £40,000 investment over 20 years would have been worth £268,100.

The Personal Pension Survey is the only survey to cover pension values at maturity. It is produced for The Irish Times by the independent financial adviser Financial Developments and Marketing (FDM).