Personal pension

Our personal pension is provided and administered by Aviva – one of the UK’s largest insurance companies.

A personal pension is a tax efficient way to build up a retirement fund. If your employer doesn’t operate a company pension scheme, or if you’re self employed, a personal pension can help you to save for your own retirement.

Even if you’ll still receive some benefits under a company pension scheme, you can also use a personal pension to top them up.

Personal pensions enjoy a number of tax advantages that you’ll not find with other types of savings, including:

• Tax relief on your contributions
• Tax efficient growth in your pension fund
• The ability to take up to 25% of your pension fund as tax-free cash

• Flexible contributions – make monthly or annual and single payments. The minimum monthly contribution is £200. You can transfer in benefits from another pension plan and your employer can also make contributions
• Investment choice – we offer three professionally managed investment funds to appeal to cautious, balanced or adventurous investors, After you have started saving, you can also choose from a wide range of individual funds
• Retirement options – when you decide to take your benefits, you’re not tied to us – shop around to see who’s offering the best annuity rates

A personal pension could be right for you if:

• You’re employed but not a member of a pension scheme, or self employed
• You receive regular bonuses and want to invest them for your future
• Your employer is going to make a contribution to your pension

Need help deciding?

A chat with one of our financial planning advisers is without obligation. Call us to make an appointment on 0800 051 1872.

So long as you are under age 75, you can start a personal pension anytime.

• How much do you need to save? – the maximum amount you can save is 100% of your earnings, subject to an overall limit of £255,000 (2010/11). The minimum contribution is £200 monthly or £2400 yearly
• Think about single contributions? – they could be a tax efficient way to invest your bonuses
• What about employer contributions? – every penny counts so it’s always worth asking

You can save in one of our multi-manager investment funds. These invest across a range of different assets. They are managed by a number of specialist managers – so they don’t rely on one manager or one asset to perform well. Once your plan is in force, you can save in a wide range of cash, bond, property and equity funds.

Your contributions benefit from the growth and tax efficiency of the investment fund or funds you have chosen.

You can take your benefits whenever you choose between age 55 and 75. Your benefits can be in the form of:

• An income for life – using the whole pension fund to buy an annuity. This will provide an income for the rest of your life
• Income and tax free cash – take up to 25% of your pension fund as a tax free cash sum, using the remainder to buy a smaller annuity
• Phased retirement – where your pension fund is broken into segments and used up step by step. You can take 25% of each segment as tax free cash and use the remainder to buy an annuity

Need help deciding?

A chat with one of our financial planning advisers is without obligation. Call us to make an appointment on 0800 051 1872.

Personal pensions are a flexible, tax efficient way to save for your retirement and enjoy a range of benefits.

• Tax relief on your contributions. The amount of tax relief you get depends on your earnings
• Your pension contributions grow in a tax efficient fund
• You can take up to 25% of your pension fund as a tax free lump sum

• You can make monthly or annual contributions
• You can make single contributions whenever you like
• Your employer can contribute
• If you have any other pensions, you may be able to transfer them to your personal pension
• You can contribute up to 100% of your earnings each year (maximum £255,000 2010/11)

• Increase, reduce, stop and restart your contributions whenever it suits you
• Even if you have no earnings, you can still get tax relief on contributions of up to £3,600 a year
• A wide investment choice – including portfolio funds to suit your attitude to risk
• Switch between investment funds
• Your money is transferred to low risk funds as you near retirement to protect your pension

Need help deciding?

A chat with one of our financial planning advisers is without obligation. Call us to make an appointment on 0800 051 1872.

• How much can I pay into a personal pension each year?
• Can I transfer other pensions into a personal pension?
• How do I claim higher rate tax relief on my contributions?
• When can I start taking my personal pension benefits?
• What happens if I die before I retire?

How much can I pay into a personal pension each year?
You can pay up to 100% of your earnings. Your employer can also pay into your personal pension.

The total amount paid in is subject to a limit (called the Annual Allowance) of £255,000 for the 2010/11 tax year. These maximum amounts cover all your pensions, so if you have a pension elsewhere it needs to be taken into account. If you don’t have any earnings you can still contribute up to £3,600 a year and still get tax relief.

Can I transfer other pensions into a personal pension?
Yes, our personal pension accepts transfers from most other personal pensions and company schemes.

How do I claim higher rate tax relief on my contributions?
You have to claim any higher rate tax relief through your annual self-assessment tax return. Your accountant or tax adviser can help you with this.

When can I start taking my personal pension benefits?
You can start taking your benefits from age 55. Under certain circumstances, if you cannot work due to ill health, you make be able to take your benefits earlier than this.

What happens if I die before I retire?
There are two options available:

• Return of fund – we’ll pay out the value of your pension fund
• Dependant’s pension – your fund can be used to buy a pension for your spouse, civil partner or other dependants