Employees entitled to a pension from a former employer may soon receive letters offering them a lump sum payout. New rules that take full effect next year allow plan administrators to offer smaller lump sum payouts to vested former employees, and even pension programs that have not offered lump sums in the past may amend their plans to take advantage of the new rules. If you’re faced with deciding whether to take a lump sum, take your time. Once you’ve made up your mind, there’s no going back. Even if you are presented with a lump sum offer, a monthly annuity payable at your normal retirement age is always an option, says Rebecca Davis, of the Pension Rights Center, in Washington, D.C., and with an annuity you won’t have to worry about how to invest your money or whether you will outlive your savings.

Both Vanguard and Fidelity Investments are gearing up for the potential onslaught of pension-payout offers by offering free help to participants in the plans they administer. Vanguard’s new Pension Reinvestment Services offers participants free phone access to certified financial planners, who do not receive commission on products they recommend, to guide them through their choices and explain the consequences of their decisions. For example, if you decide to forgo a monthly pension benefit, you may roll over the lump sum to an IRA or to your current employer’s 401(k) plan with no immediate tax consequences. Future withdrawals will be taxed at your ordinary income tax rates.