John Buchanan is a Partner (or more accurately a Member) of Collins Actuaries (Scotland) LLP, and supports solicitors in the area from Aberdeen through Fife, Edinburgh and the Lothians, into the Borders, and then to Dumfriesshire.

John entered the actuarial profession immediately after leaving school in 1966. He qualified in 1975 the day before his marriage to Linda – which might be called rather good timing.

Before joining Collins Actuaries, John worked for 35 years in the life assurance and pensions industry; the last ten years were spent with the Scottish Equitable in Edinburgh in a senior managerial role.

In a long and varied career, he has had experience in most areas of the insurance industry including spells in marketing and information technology, but about half his career has been spent specialising in pensions – whether technical, administrative or managerial. Over the last ten years of his corporate career, he had particular involvement in specialised areas of pensions including income drawdown, small self administered schemes and self invested pension plans. In the late 70s, he was in on the ground floor when the current State Earnings Related Pension Scheme (fondly known as SERPS) was introduced – including developing the administrative, systems and technical infrastructure to support it for his company.

Since joining Collins Actuaries, John and his partner have been involved in producing several hundred pension reports in connection with both divorce and reparation. He has also appeared as an expert witness in both the Sheriff Court and the Court of Session, as well as at Employment Tribunals. He has also had a number of articles published in the legal press.

John and his wife live in Edinburgh and have two children. After playing squash and badminton to county level in the 60s and 70s, John has now had to settle for less energetic pursuits and has taken up golf, which he plays in North Berwick, close to the holiday property he and his wife own.