The retirement process

Before retirement
Either normal retirement age or your
Target Retirement Age, if different

You’ll automatically receive a Retirement Pack. This will contain your options for taking your personal account. You don’t need to do anything if you don’t want to retire yet. You can contact us at a later date and ask for a quotation.

Before retirement

Complete the forms in the retirement pack, stating how you want to use your individual account. Return them to us with any certificates (for example your birth or marriage certificate) we’ve asked for. If you’ve any health issues, and are choosing to use some or all of your individual account to buy an annuity, you’ll also have to complete and return an Enhanced Annuity Questionnaire.

After the end of the month in which you retire

The investments held in your individual account will be disinvested on the last working day of the month in which you retire. We’ll receive your final payments, and add them to your disinvested funds. This will give us a final value of your individual account. If you have chosen to buy an annuity, this is the value we’ll use to get quotations for you. If you have chosen to take all of your individual account as a taxable cash sum, we will arrange for this cash sum to be paid to you. If you have opted for drawdown, we’ll transfer the money to your new arrangement.

After the end of the month in which you retired –
if you have chosen to buy an annuity

To get the best value for money for your individual account, we’ll carry out a search of some of the best annuity providers in the market. We’ll send you details of the highest quote we’ve obtained, along with the necessary application form.

After the end of the month in which you have retired –
if you have chosen to buy an annuity

Once we have received your completed annuity forms, we’ll use your disinvested pension account to buy your annuity, and will pay your tax-free cash sum, if you chose that option as well as buying an annuity.

After the end of the month in which you retire

Your policy documents will be sent to you, and your annuity payments will then start, according to the payroll schedule of your annuity provider. The first payment will be backdated to the date of your retirement.