Tideway Tideway s Final Salary Pension Transfer Process February 2017
1. Appraisal Stage Client Initial Enquiry Submit current CETV offer and Fact Find to us, send LOA to scheme First brief call with an adviser to discuss your advice needs Send us ID verification* Tideway Automatic acknowledgement email outlining next steps We send Initial Appraisal to you and request ID verification We send CEL to you We send you the initial appraisal within 5-15 working days** after receiving your CETV and Fact Find CETV: Cash equivalent transfer value. The cash equivalent amount you are offered by your scheme in return for giving up your defined benefits. Please send us a current cash equivalent transfer value. We will not be able to write the advice report with an expired cash equivalent transfer value offer. For automatic engagement (i.e. signing the CEL), there must be at least 45 days left before the expiry date of your CETV. Where your CETV has less than 45 days to expiry, please contact us to discuss this further. Initial Appraisal: 6-page document which assesses the generosity of your transfer offer. LOA: Letter of Authority. This document gives Tideway the authority to liaise in detail with your scheme. CEL: Client Engagement Letter. This document declares you have engaged with us for advice and is the mandate for us to write the advice report. *ID must be certified if we do not meet you in person. Please see explanation on page 5 **Although we aim to send you the initial appraisal within 5 working days, due to a high number of cases currently it may take up to 15 working days 2
2. Engaged Advice Stage When signing the CEL, at least 45 days must be left before the CETV expires Client Send us signed CEL Meeting/call with an adviser Send us back the report due diligence signed plus the application papers Refer to your scheme checklist Tideway We send countersigned CEL to you and book meeting/call with an adviser We send Advice Report to you and application papers We process your transfer*** Advice Report: 20 to 30-page document which assesses the transfer in detail and outlines the risk of the decision to transfer. Due Diligence Sign Off sheet: The back page of the advice report. ***Please read our Important Notes overleaf on the submission process and timescales 3
Important Notes On Transfer Submission Timescales Your Transfer Offer Expiry Date Transfer offers come with a 3 month (90 Days) guaranteed offer period in which you must submit your complete transfer paperwork, but not complete the whole transfer process. If your submission is not completed within the guaranteed period the schemes reserve the right to revalue your transfer value up or down, and in some cases force you to pay for a new transfer offer and paperwork. Tideway will endeavour to help clients, who engage with us for advice with at least 45 days left until the offer expires to meet their deadlines. However, there are too many factors outside of our control for LLP to be held responsible for the movement in transfer offers if a deadline is missed. Meeting the deadline requires the cooperation of the ceding defined benefit scheme, the receiving scheme provider and above all the member to ensure that all the relevant items are completed. Please read your transfer discharge papers carefully to make sure you understand exactly what these are and what documents need to go where, as the ultimate responsibility lies with you the member to meet the deadline. Please ask our Client Services team for help if you are unsure of exactly what needs to be done. With an increase in demand many schemes are struggling to keep up with member requests and transfer paperwork, it is increasingly common for schemes to take at least 10 days to respond to any communication. This means that if you want to get confirmation that you have met the three month guaranteed offer deadline your submission paperwork needs to be completed and with Tideway at least two full working weeks before the deadline expiry. If you engage with Tideway with less than 45 days left on your offer we can discuss with you how likely it will be to be able to meet your deadline and the implications of missing it. The Pension Regulators guidance on how schemes should handle their members through the transfer process can be downloaded at: http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/docs/db-dc-transfers-conversions-regulatory-guidance.pdf Tax-free Cash Payments You cannot access tax free cash until your 55 th birthday. Pension providers typically take 10-15 days to process a tax free cash request after they have received the funds from the ceding scheme, defined benefit schemes have up to six months to pay a transfer value after the end of the guaranteed period. 4
Important Notes on Identification Verification We will need some ID from you, either a passport or photo driving licence and one utility bill or bank statement (no more than three months old, not mobile phone bill and not printed from the internet). If you do not have a utility bill or bank statement that fits this criteria we can accept a passport and driving licence or please call us to discuss alternative documents. Proof of Identity: We accept certified documents from the following professionals: Accountant who belongs to a regulated or professional body Attorney Barrister Bank or Building Society Official (official bank stamp to be used) Commissioner of Oaths / Notary Public Justice of the Peace FCA registered individuals/ introducer UK Post Office, authorised under the Post Office Document Certification Service (on their letterhead) Solicitor The person certifying the documents should not be: related to the client; living at the same address or in a relationship with the client. The copy must be legible and the photograph visible. Wording for the certification: To certify the document the certifying person should review the copy and the original, and write the following statement on the copy: I, [name of certifier], certify that this is an authentic copy of [full name of client] s [name of document] as witnessed by me on [date of certification]. The certifier must sign the copy, stating their job title, company name and professional address and their business telephone number. The copy must include the full page of the copied document. The certification must be less than three months and must be written in English. 5