How do I?
Please see our FAQ How do I change my investments?
To add a new Trustee please complete either the Appointment of additional trustees form or, for Scottish Trusts, the Changing trustees form.
To remove an existing trustee or for an existing trustee to resign as a trustee please complete the Changing trustees form. If you want to remove an existing trustee then you must check that the trust contains a power that allows you to do so. You may need to consult your solicitor for advice.
An up-to-date valuation of your plan is shown on the 'Plan Value' screen if you log-in to our secure online services.
Alternatively, you can contact us and we’ll be happy to help.
Please complete a Plan review form or go to our online form, select 'Customers' then 'Pension' and then select the death benefit option from the dropdown menu.
You can check the income limits on the 'Summary of Retirement Control Plan' page using our secure online services.
Please contact us for confirmation of how much income is still available (the 'Income History' page on online services shows income paid in a particular tax year).
You can request a duplicate P60 on the 'Income History' page of our secure online services.
Please contact us.
Log-in our secure online services and click on the 'Update details' button in the 'My details' section, or update your details.
General queries
Phased retirement lets you build up or phase pension benefits over time allowing you to retire gradually. Depending on when your plan started you may be able to tell us the exact amount you’d like to use to provide your benefits.
Each time you move money from your pension savings you can normally take 25% of the value as tax-free cash. With the balance, you have the option of moving this into drawdown (see below) or using it to buy an annuity.
If you decide an annuity is the best option for you, you should be aware that we don't sell annuities. You can buy one from another provider but it's important you shop around, taking into account your personal circumstances to get the best deal.
Phased Retirement Plan
When you reach age 75, if you have any investments in a phased retirement plan and you haven't told us what you want to do with these investments, we'll automatically move them into drawdown (see below). You won't receive any tax-free cash you may have been entitled to.
Retirement Control plan
If you have a Retirement Control plan with an income account and/or retirement funding account you must make a decision before you reach age 75 on what you want to do with the investments. If you don't want to take your benefits, you'll have to find a suitable alternative product either with us or another provider.
The value of your plan, and any income from it, can fall as well as rise and isn't guaranteed. You could get back less than you originally invested.
Drawdown lets you take an income (as an alternative to an annuity) while your pension fund remains invested.
The drawdown facility under your plan is operated under HMRC's capped drawdown pension rules. This means the income you take each year from your plan can't be more than the maximum capped drawdown pension amount specific to your personal circumstances.
The rules around how much income you can take from capped drawdown pension may change. This could mean that the income you can take from your plan is less than expected or no longer meets your requirements.
The value of your plan, and any income from it, can fall as well as rise and isn't guaranteed. You could get back less than you originally invested.
The level of drawdown income you can take from your plan isn't guaranteed.
Taking drawdown income reduces the size of your pension fund and the investment growth may not be sufficient to maintain the level of income you select. If you take a level of income higher than the growth achieved by your investments, your pension fund will reduce in value. You may in the future have to reduce your drawdown income, especially if your investments don't perform as expected, or you live longer than you originally anticipated when you chose your initial level of income.
You should also be aware that the income you receive from drawdown may be lower than the amount you could receive from an annuity, depending on the performance of your investments.
Yes, the options open to you depend on the type of plan you have and when you started the plan.
Phased Retirement Plan
You need to make sure you let us know what you want to do with any remaining funds in your phased retirement plan before you reach age 75. If we don’t hear anything from you by your 75th birthday we'll move your remaining funds into drawdown with no tax-free cash. This means you'll lose your entitlement to any remaining tax-free cash.
If you decide an annuity is the best option for you, you should be aware that we don't sell annuities. You can buy one from another provider but it's important you shop around, taking into account your personal circumstances to get the best deal.
Retirement Cash Account
Your plan will continue on the same terms until you tell us otherwise.
Retirement Control plan
This plan can't continue past the age of 75. You'll need to arrange to transfer your funds to another plan with ourselves or another provider before you reach age 75 if you want to remain invested after your 75th birthday.
If you do want to remain invested after your 75th birthday you have to be aware that transferring or investing your pension may not be the best option for you. You should compare the benefits from your current pension with the estimated benefits of your new pension, including any guarantees and penalties. You should speak to your financial adviser about which option suits your needs. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one in your area by visiting moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser, or contacting Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us.
Taking an income
The maximum amount of income you can take each year is 150% of the basis amount.
The basis amount is the yearly amount of level pension that the Government Actuary’s Department determines that a person in good health could buy on the open market, based on their age and sex using their drawdown pension fund.
The maximum income that you can take is reviewed every three years before age 75 and every year after age 75 (if your plan allows drawdown to continue past age 75), based on the value of your drawdown pension fund that you have at the time.
The rules around how much income you can take from capped drawdown pension may change. This could mean that the income you can take from your plan is less than expected or no longer meets your requirements.
Yes. You don’t have to take any income from your plan under current HMRC guidance, unless a minimum amount is imposed by the Government.
Yes – you can vary both the level and the frequency of income you take at any time, as long as the amount of income you take is within the maximum capped drawdown pension amount for your plan.
The rules around how much income you can take from capped drawdown pension may change. This could mean that the income you can take from your plan is less than expected or no longer meets your requirements.
We review the maximum capped drawdown pension amount (also referred to as the maximum income limit) for your drawdown fund every three years if you’re under age 75 and, where your plan allows continuation of drawdown after age 75, every year after you’re 75. If you’ve more than one drawdown account, we review each account based on when you first put funds into that account.
We review the maximum income limit to make sure this reflects the value of your remaining drawdown fund and the current economic climate at the time. Its intention is to make sure you don't run down your drawdown pension fund too quickly.
When we recalculate the maximum income limit, the maximum level may change, either up or down. We’ll automatically change the amount we pay you to the new maximum if the amount of income you currently receive is over the new maximum. The new amount will start from the first payment due date after the review.
Where the income remains within the new maximum limit, we won’t adjust future payments unless you give us a written instruction to do so.
You can start taking an income from age 55 (changing to 57 in April 2028). You can only take income when you are below the minimum pension age if you have a protected pension age or you're in ill-health.
Yes - a drawdown arrangement can be transferred to a new drawdown arrangement in another pension scheme. The transfer can be made to another suitable drawdown product with us or a new provider. The transfer must be on a like for like basis and can be transferred as capped drawdown if the new product can accept capped drawdown pension transfers or alternatively it may be transferred to a new flexi-access drawdown arrangement. Funds held in a drawdown arrangement can also be used to purchase an annuity.
Transferring or investing your pension may not be the best option for you. You should compare the benefits from your current pension with the estimated benefits of your new pension, including any guarantees and penalties. You should speak to your financial adviser about which option suits your needs. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one in your area by visiting moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser, or contact Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us.
Yes – on transfer, the same limit will apply, and the review period will carry over to your new drawdown plan.
If your drawdown account started before 6 April 2015 it's known as capped drawdown. If the new drawdown plan accepts the drawdown transfer on the same capped drawdown terms then the maximum income limit(s) will continue to apply along with the same review period(s). If the new drawdown plan can’t accept the transfer on capped drawdown terms, then the transferred funds will normally be moved into a flexi-access drawdown plan.
If your drawdown account started on or after 6 April 2015, although the terms of your plan restrict the income you can take to the maximum capped drawdown pension amount, the account is classed as flexi-access drawdown under HMRC legislation. So, if you transfer to another suitable product with us, or another provider the maximum limit and review period will no longer apply and you’ll be able to drawdown as much or as little income as you’d like under the flexi-access drawdown rules, subject to any terms and conditions imposed by the new product or provider.
Transferring or investing your pension may not be the best option for you. You should compare the benefits from your current pension with the estimated benefits of your new pension, including any guarantees and penalties. You should speak to your financial adviser about which option suits your needs. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one in your area by visiting moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser, or contact Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us.
No.
Yes. You can transfer money invested in a phased retirement plan to another product with us or another provider at any time.
Transferring or investing your pension may not be the best option for you. You should compare the benefits from your current pension with the estimated benefits of your new pension, including any guarantees and penalties. You should speak to your financial adviser about which option suits your needs. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one in your area by visiting moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser, or contact Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us.
Death benefits
If you die while your pension funds are still invested in your phased retirement plan, the fund will usually be payable as a lump sum unless you've told us that you'd like your spouse, civil partner or any named dependants to have the option of a pension, which may be payable as drawdown pension or an annuity.
The lump sum will be payable to either the trustees of a valid trust, if this has been set up for the plan, or, if not, we'll decide who to pay the lump sum to from a list of potential beneficiaries set out in the scheme rules. We'll take into account your circumstances when you die and anyone you've previously told us in writing you wish the money to go to.
If you're under age 75 at the date of your death and the lump sum death benefit is paid (including any additional life cover), or pension benefits are designated, within two years from the date we're notified of the date of your death, they will be tested against your available lifetime allowance. There will be a lifetime allowance charge payable on any excess over your lifetime allowance of 55% on a lump sum payment or a 25% charge on funds used to provide a pension. The trustees or beneficiaries will be responsible for paying any lifetime allowance charge due on a lump sum and where the funds are used to provide a pension, the recipient of the pension will be responsible for paying any lifetime allowance charge.
The lump sum or pension will generally be paid tax-free if you're under age 75 at the date of your death. If you die at or after age 75, the lump sum or pension will be taxed at the recipient's marginal rate of income tax.
This information is based on our understanding of current taxation law and HMRC practice, which may change.
There are three possible options available to the nominated survivor(s). To be a nominated survivor, the following must all be met:
- The person must be a dependant, both at the time of the nomination and at the date of your death.
- You must tell us in writing, received by Aegon before your death, that the person is to be a nominated survivor.
- The person being nominated accepts being a nominated survivor.
They can:
- take the fund as a lump sum,
- buy an annuity immediately; or
- choose to continue income drawdown in a plan in their own name.
Tax may be payable on any lump sum, annuity or drawdown income depending on your age at date of death:
- If you're under age 75 when you die, any lump sum, annuity payments, or income taken as drawdown, paid to the beneficiary will generally be paid tax free. However, the lump sum must be paid within two years from the date we're notified of the date of death for it to be paid tax free. If it's paid after the two-year period, it will be taxed at the beneficiary's marginal rate of income tax or at 45% if it's paid to a trust.
- If you’re age 75 or over when you die, any lump sum, annuity payments or income taken as drawdown and paid to your beneficiaries will be taxed at their marginal rate of income tax. If a lump sum is paid to a trust, this will be taxed at 45%.
This information is based on our understanding of current taxation law and HMRC practice, which may change.
The fund payable on the death of the survivor in drawdown is paid out as a lump sum either to the trustees of a valid trust, if one has been set up for the plan, or if not, to beneficiaries chosen at our discretion as scheme administrator. We'll take into account their circumstances when they die and anyone they've previously told us in writing they wish the money to go to.
The lump sum will generally be paid tax-free if the survivor is under age 75 at the date of death and it's paid within two years from the date we're notified of the date of death. If it's paid after the two-year period or the survivor dies at or after age 75, the lump sum will be taxed at the beneficiary's marginal rate of income tax or at 45% if it's paid to a trust.
This information is based on our understanding of current taxation law and HMRC practice, which may change.
If your phased retirement plan isn't subject to a valid trust, we'll decide who to pay the lump sum to from a list of potential beneficiaries set out in the scheme rules as listed below. We'll take into account your circumstances when you die and anyone you've previously told us in writing you wish the money to go to.
- Any individuals named on an Expression of wish/Death Benefit nomination form given to us before your death (the individuals can be trustees of a trust).
- Your surviving spouse, civil partner, children and descendants (children include adopted children).
- Your dependants.
- The individuals entitled to benefit from your estate whether under your will or on your intestacy or who would have been entitled to benefit if you had died intestate and the estate had been of sufficient amount.
- Your legal personal representatives.
This information is based on our understanding of current taxation law and HMRC practice, which may change.
Investment strategy
There are two main risks.
Investments don't perform as you expected resulting in you needing to reduce your income at a future date.
Any monies held in the Cash fund reduce in value in real terms where inflation exceeds the growth rate of the fund.
Taking drawdown income reduces the size of your pension fund and the investment growth may not be sufficient to maintain the level of income you select. If you take a level of income higher than the growth achieved by your investments, your pension fund will reduce in value. You may in the future have to reduce your drawdown income, especially if your investments don't perform as expected, or you live longer than you originally anticipated when you chose your initial level of income.
The higher the level of income you take the higher the level of growth needed to make sure that the fund remains sufficient to maintain that income level in the future. You should seek financial advice and have a suitable investment strategy for your own personal circumtances. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find one in your area by visiting moneyhelper.org.uk/choosing-a-financial-adviser, or contact Origen Financial Services. Origen Financial Services Ltd, is wholly owned by Aegon UK plc but operate independently to us.