All Pensions articles – Page 146
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Article
Claybrook launches mobile pensions access
Pensions software provider Claybrook has launched a service that enables employees to access their workplace pension information via a mobile phone or tablet.The service is compatible with mobile platforms including Windows Phone, Apple iOS and Google Android.Staff are able to check fund valuation, manage investments online, calculate their estimated pension ...
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Article
FTSE 250 pension deficits reach £9 billion
The total deficit of FTSE 250 pension schemes as of 30 June 2012 is estimated to be £9 billion, up from £6 billion in 2011, according to research by JLT Pension Capital Strategies.The FTSE 250 and their pension disclosures: a quarterly report found that deficit funding has increased in response ...
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Article
Barnardo’s proposes to close DB pension
Barnardo’s has announced to staff a proposal to close its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to future accrual from 31 March 2013.Employees at the children’s charity will be offered access to a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme from April 2013, which will be more generous than the government requirements for ...
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Article
Jelf appoints auto-enrolment consultant
Jelf Employee Benefits has appointed Caroline Burnham auto-enrolment consultant.Burnham will project manage employers in the run up to their staging date and ensure employers are prepared for their new duties.She will also be the lead on the development and implementation of the organisation’s auto-enrolment software, AE Manager.Alan Milward, corporate benefits ...
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Article
FTSE 350 pension scheme deficits static in 2012
Accounting deficits for FTSE 350 organisations’ defined benefit (DB) pension schemes in the UK showed little increase in 2012, according to research by Mercer.Its Pension risk survey found that the estimated deficit for DB schemes stood at £62 billion at 31 December 2012, compared to a deficit figure of £61 ...
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Article
Chamber of Shipping completes pension buy-in
The trustees of the UK Chamber of Shipping’s defined benefit (DB) pension plan have concluded a buy-in arrangement for the scheme.The transaction covers £40 million of pension liabilities, which represent all of the plan’s current pensioner members.The UK Chamber of Shipping is the trade association for the UK shipping industry ...
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Article
Employers shift launch dates for auto-enrolment
The Co-operative Group’s auto-enrolment staging date was 1 November 2012, but it built in the legal three-month postponement period so the first pension contributions come out of employees’ pay in February 2013.Paul Macro, head of defined contribution (DC) at Mercer, said this was a common approach for many retailers because ...
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Article
Confusion over charges for pension advice
It came just weeks before the retail distribution review (RDR), which scraps commission on many financial products, came into effect on 31 December.On 26 November, pensions minister Steve Webb wrote to Otto Thoresen, chair of the Association of British Insurers (ABI), saying his department was to carry out a policy ...
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Article
Pension allowance changes revive interest in DB plans
George Osborne announced on 5 December that the annual pension allowance on which people receive tax relief will be cut from £50,000 to £40,000 and the lifetime allowance will fall from £1.5 million to £1.25 million from 6 April 2014.Jackie Holmes, senior consultant at Towers Watson, said: “Previously, the allowance’s ...
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AnalysisAuto-enrolment needs strong communications strategy
IFYOU READ NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS…Creative auto-enrolment communication strategies can educate first-time pension scheme members.A good communication strategy will relate to employees’ personal retirement goals.Key messages should be presented in a way that helps employees understand the consequences of their actionsPension scheme communications strategies have traditionally focused on the tax-efficient ...
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Case Studies
Meridian uses electronic communications
Sarah Iglesias, talent operations adviser for Meridian, says: “We learned a lot from AWR, listening to feedback from clients, candidates and employees, and developing a new strategy. For auto-enrolment, we decided on a similar electronic approach, integrated with our current electronic administrative systems.Legal requirements are often clouded in our sector, ...
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Case Studies
Pimlico Plumbers uses face-to-face auto-enrolment strategy
Dominic Ceraldi, head of HR, says: “The strategy was simple, but thorough and effective. I and the other three members of the HR team met regularly with the company’s pension provider to make sure we were fully aware of the details of the reform and how it will affect the ...
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Case Studies
Admiral Group uses auto-enrolment to promote pensions
Benefits administrator Lindsey Christie says: “The strategy was simple. We needed to tailor it to our young workforce, whose average age is well below 30, and we enticed them with a simple presentation that was easy for them to identify with, because pensions can be a complex topic.”The insurer ran ...
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Article
Labour plans pension cap to fund jobs
Labour has proposed to cap pensions tax relief at 20% for those earning over £150,000 a year in order to fund a job guarantee programme for the unemployed.Ed Balls, Labour shadow chancellor, outlined the party’s plans in an article for PoliticsHome. These are aimed at guaranteeing a minimum wage job ...
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Analysis
DC pension default investments explained
IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE, READ THIS…There is no single definition of a default fund.Investment strategy is as, if not more, important than asset allocation.Nest is expected to become a benchmark pension scheme, particularly on charges.A default investment option is the fund or funds into which employers automatically put employees ...
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Analysis
DC pension schemes can learn governance lessons from DB
IF YOU READ NOTHNG ELSE, READ THIS…A committee should be at the heart of a robust pensions governance structure.Governance committees should consider appropriate investment fund options and default strategies.Scheme members should be given clear and relevant communications.The defined contribution (DC) pension plan has become the scheme of choice for many ...
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Article
Report published on workplace savings platform selection
Administration, risk control and competitive fees are the three key critical considerations for defined contribution (DC) pension schemes when selecting a platform provider in the UK, according to research by BNY Mellon.Its report, The future of UK DC pension platforms, published in association with Cerulli Associates, surveyed 54 UK pension ...
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Article
OFT launches DC pensions market study
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has launched a market study of defined contribution (DC) workplace pension schemes.The study aims to examine whether schemes are set up to provide the best value for money for employees.It will look at:How pension providers compete and how the market develops.Whether there is enough ...
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Article
FirstGroup uses target date funds for DC plan
FirstGroup is using target-date funds as the default option for its trust-based defined contribution (DC) pension scheme, which will be used to auto-enrol 12,000 employees on 1 April 2013.Speaking at the Employee Benefits Pensions and Workplace Savings Summit on 31 January, John Chilman, group rewards and pensions director at FirstGroup, ...
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Article
Employers to reduce DC contributions
Nearly one in three respondents have considered reducing contribution levels to defined contribution (DC) pension schemes that are used for auto-enrolment, according to research by Aon Hewitt.Its survey found that more respondents are considering lowering contribution levels for non-pension scheme members than in 2011, when one in seven were considering ...