Our defined benefit (DB) pension scheme
Your DB section explained
The DB section closed to the build-up of future pension on 30 April 2011. The DB section is funded by Schroders and provides a fixed retirement income that you can claim at age 60. The amount you receive is based on your final salary and depends on how long you were a member of the DB section up to 30 April 2011.
The DB section is set up under a trust, which means all assets are managed securely by a separate trust company, Schroder Pension Trustee Limited. This is governed by a set of Trust Deed and Rules that set out how the DB section is run and helps protect your pension benefits. You can read more about the Trustee and learn what it does on the dedicated page.
What you need to know about the DB section
The DB section provides a retirement income that will be paid to you for the rest of your life and will increase each year to help protect it from the effects of inflation. The amount you receive will depend on your salary when you stopped building up your pension and the number of years you were building it up for. Your pension will be paid monthly direct to your bank or building society account and will be taxed under the PAYE system.
What you can do with your DB section benefits
Retirement
The retirement age for the DB section is 60, but you can access your pension benefits at any time from age 55 – this is rising to age 57 in April 2028. Taking your pension earlier or later than age 60 will affect how much you receive. For example, if you take your pension before age 60, it will be reduced because it will be paid for longer. If you retire later than age 60, your pension will be increased to reflect the later start date.
At retirement, you can take up to 25% of the value of your pension benefits as a tax-free cash sum (capped at a maximum of £268,275). Your pension income will then be reduced in line with the amount you’ve withdrawn.
Transfer your funds
If you wanted to move your money elsewhere (e.g. into another pension you have from a previous or new employer), you may be able request a transfer payment. To do this, you’ll need to ask Aptia for a transfer value quote – quotes are guaranteed for three months. You can only request a transfer value quote once every 12 months.
Before making a transfer out of the DB section – we strongly recommend seeking guidance from a financial adviser to assess the risk involved and to ensure you’re making the right choice for your current and future objectives. It is not possible to transfer into the DB section. If the value of your transfer quotation is more than £30,000 then you are required to get advice before you transfer. For help with this, take a look at the Guidance and advice section. Please note that you’ll need to meet the cost of this advice.
It’s important to be aware of any fraudulent offers. Read how you can help protect yourself on our Pension scams page.