Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How will I know my contract type?
Why have I received this statement?
On what dates are the annual statements based?
Why does it take so long for you to send me my statement?
Does the policy have to be in force for a full year before an annual statement is produced?
What are bonuses and how do they work?
How is my annual bonus calculated?
What is a final bonus and how is it calculated?
What is Lifetime Allowance?
Wesleyan Assurance Society membership benefits
What does membership of the Society mean?
Questions only applicable to Unitised With Profits policies:
What is a Market Value Reduction (MVR)?
Why does my pension statement include an illustration of what my pension may pay me at retirement?
Why have I received an illustration for some of my pension policies but not others?
Why are the assumed current earnings shown on my illustration very different from my actual current earnings?
What are protected rights policies?
Why are rebates into my Protected Rights Policy assumed to cease at the end of the
2011/12 tax year?
What is the Free-Standing Additional Voluntary Contribution Scheme (FSAVC)?
What are retirement annuities?
Why are the contribution amounts shown slightly less than the actual amounts that I am paying?
How will I know my contract type?
Please take a look at the top of your statement, which will indicate the type of policy you hold.
Conventional With Profits policy
The value of your policy is based on an initial sum assured plus bonuses (both annual and final).
Unit-Linked policy
Your policy purchases units in an investment fund, or funds. The value is based on the unit price of the policy.
Unitised With Profits policy
Your policy looks very similar to unit-linked policies except the value of the unit price increases in line with bonuses added to your policy.
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Why have I received this statement?
For Conventional With Profits policies - your statement provides details of the amount added to your policy this year, in the form of an annual bonus. The amount added increases the guaranteed benefits which your policy will provide in the future.
For Unit-Linked policies - your statement shows the value of your policy on the statement date. Some statements also provide a summary of units allocated or deducted since the last statement date.
For Unitised With Profits policies - your statement shows the value of guaranteed benefits which your policy will provide in the future, unless a market value reduction applies (see 'What is a Market Value Reduction (MVR?'). Some statements also show the amount of final bonus and the value of your policy on the statement date.
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On what dates are the annual statements based?
For Conventional With Profits policies - this year's annual bonus was added to your policy on 2 April 2011 for the year 2010. For policies in the Medical Sickness (MSS) Fund this annual bonus is effective from 31 December 2010. If your policy matures, or you were to die, during the following 12 months you might have some extra annual bonus added as well, depending on what type of policy you have.
For Unit-Linked and Unitised With Profits policies (except Stakeholder Pensions) - the statement shows the position of your policy on 31 March 2011.
For Unit-Linked (Stakeholder Pensions) - the statement shows the position of your policy on 5 April 2011.
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Why does it take so long for you to send me my statement?
The calculations involved in preparing your statements are detailed and to ensure the accuracy of all policy statement figures we have a rigorous quality control procedure that takes place before we send your statement. Due to the complexities and volumes concerned this process usually takes several weeks.
If you would like an up-to-date valuation of your policy or further details on your unit movements, please contact us on the telephone number stated in your covering letter.
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Does the policy have to be in force for a full year before an annual statement is produced?
For Unit-Linked and Unitised With Profits policies (except Stakeholder Pensions) -
your policy must have contained units within it on 31 March 2011.
For Unit-Linked Stakeholder Pensions - your policy must have contained units within it at some point during the year 6 April 2010 to 5 April 2011.
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What are bonuses and how do they work?
Bonuses only apply to With Profits policies (Conventional and Unitised). You will receive part of your share of these profits in the form of an annual bonus which we add to your policy.
In addition to your existing annual bonus a final bonus may be payable when the policy ends.
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How is my annual bonus calculated?
For Conventional With Profits policies - the notes at the bottom of your statement normally say what the annual bonus rates are. For most types of policy, the annual bonus is calculated as a percentage of the sum assured plus a percentage of the bonuses you already have.
For Unitised With Profits policies - these do not have bonuses added each year as such - any bonus payable is added to your policy throughout the year by increases in the unit price.
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What is a final bonus and how is it calculated?
This only applies to With Profits policies (Conventional and Unitised). A final bonus may be added to your policy when it matures or if you die. We do not guarantee these bonuses so they may change at any time, but certainly at least once a year when new bonuses are declared.
A final bonus is usually calculated as a percentage of the annual bonus depending on how long your policy has been in force, however, the exact method does vary for different types of policy. We may add an allowance for a final bonus if you cash in your policy. However, please note that in some circumstances you will not be entitled to a final bonus.
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What is Lifetime Allowance?
Lifetime Allowance means the overall ceiling on the amount of tax-privileged pension savings that any one individual can draw.
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Wesleyan Assurance Society membership benefits
It will state at the top of your statement if you are entitled to membership of Wesleyan Assurance Society.
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What does membership of the Society mean?
As a long-established mutual society, we are owned by our members and not by shareholders. With no shareholders to satisfy with short-term quick returns, we can take a more responsible medium to long-term view, with our members sharing in the Society's success.
This is the fourth year of the Wesleyan Mutual Rewards Scheme offering exclusive benefits to Wesleyan customers. In January 2011 certain policyholders will have received details of a £100 discount which may be used across a range of insurance products.
If you have received this, we hope you take advantage of this year's Mutual Reward Scheme and we'll continue to look for ways of sharing the benefits of mutuality with you in the future.
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Questions only applicable to Unitised With Profits policies:
What is a Market Value Reduction (MVR)?
This is an adjustment we might need to make if you choose to take money out of the With Profits Fund in certain circumstances, such as when share prices are generally low or after a large fall in the stock market. If we apply an MVR then you will not receive the full value of your With Profits units.
The aim of the MVR is to ensure that customers who leave their money invested in the With Profits Fund in poor years do not lose out because other people take their money out of the fund.
The size of any market value reduction would depend largely on market conditions and the impact on the underlying investment fund, as well as the length of time your money has been invested.
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Why does my pension statement include an illustration of what my pension may pay me at retirement?
For most types of pension policies insurance companies are now required by law to provide, each year, an illustration of the pension income that your policy may provide at retirement.
In this way you can assess whether the income from your pension arrangements will be sufficient to meet your needs when you retire.
The illustration allows for inflation between now and your assumed retirement date. That is, it shows the possible benefits in terms of today's money.
We have included a further document with your illustration, a leaflet entitled 'Information about your pension illustration'. This provides further details about your illustration and the assumptions on which it is based. We strongly advise you to read this document.
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Why have I received an illustration for some of my pension policies but not others?
We do not normally provide an illustration for policies that are less than two years away from the selected retirement date on that policy, or for certain types of policies that commenced prior to 1 July 1988. However, you can always request an illustration by contacting us on the telephone number stated in your covering letter.
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Why are the assumed current earnings shown on my illustration very different from my actual current earnings?
We only show an assumed current earnings value on illustrations where our records indicate that the Government will pay National Insurance rebates into your policy in the future.
We do not, however, have a record of an individual's current earnings. Therefore, we have to estimate them based on the amount of the most recent rebates paid into the policy.
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What are protected rights policies?
These policies were set up to allow people to contract-out of the State Second Pension (S2P, previously SERPS).
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Why are rebates into my Protected Rights Policy assumed to cease at the end of the 2011/12 tax year?
The Government have recently announced that individuals will not be able to use policies such as our Protected Rights policies to contract out of the State Second Pension from the end of the 2011/12 tax year. Therefore, the projections assume that no rebates will be received into Protected Rights policies in respect of tax years after 5 April 2012.
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What is the Free-Standing Additional Voluntary Contribution Scheme (FSAVC)?
The FSAVC was designed to top-up policies from an employer's occupational pension scheme. Benefits can now be taken independently of the occupational pension scheme.
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What are retirement annuities?
These are policies that were set up before July 1988. No new retirement annuity policy could be set up after that date. The rules for tax-free cash have changed to allow 25% of the pension fund and benefits to be taken from the age of 55.
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Why are the contribution amounts shown slightly less than the actual amounts that I am paying?
The contribution amounts shown on your illustration do not include the cost of Waiver of Contribution Benefit, if applicable. This benefit allows your plan contributions to continue if you are unable to work due to sickness or accident. The illustration shows only the amounts that are used to provide benefits at retirement.
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