MEMBER GUIDE
Introduction
It’s important for you to read this document, as it explains the main points about the Complete
Pension Trust.
If you have been automatically enrolled into the Complete Pension Trust, you should also read
the ‘member guide – automatic enrolment’.
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Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 2
Contents…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 3
Its Aims ............................................................................................................................. 4
Your Commitment ............................................................................................................ 4
Risks .................................................................................................................................. 4
Questions and answers ..................................................................................................... 5
What is the Complete Pension Trust? .............................................................................................. 5
Who can join the pension scheme? .................................................................................................. 5
How flexible is it? ............................................................................................................................. 5
What might I get when I want to take benefits? .............................................................................. 5
When can I take my benefits? .......................................................................................................... 5
What choices will I have when I decide to take my benefits? .......................................................... 5
How much can be paid into my plan each tax year? ........................................................................ 6
What about tax? ............................................................................................................................... 6
What happens to my contributions? ................................................................................................ 6
Can I transfer benefits from another pension scheme? ................................................................... 6
Where can I find out about the charges? ......................................................................................... 6
What happens to the plan if I die before I take benefits? ................................................................ 6
What happens if I stop contributing? ............................................................................................... 7
What happens if I leave the scheme? ............................................................................................... 7
What happens if I stop working for my current employer? .............................................................. 7
Can I transfer my fund out of the scheme? ...................................................................................... 7
How will I know how my plan is doing? ............................................................................................ 7
Are there any additional requirements if I’m automatically enrolled? ............................................. 7
Other Information ............................................................................................................ 8
How to complain .............................................................................................................................. 8
The Pensions Advisory Service.......................................................................................................... 8
The Pensions Ombudsman ............................................................................................................... 8
The Financial Ombudsman Service ................................................................................................... 8
Trustees ............................................................................................................................................ 8
Law ................................................................................................................................................... 8
Compensation .................................................................................................................................. 8
How to contact us............................................................................................................. 8
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Its Aims
To build up a sum of money in a tax-efficient way to give you an income during your retirement; or if you prefer, a
reduced income and a tax-free lump sum.
Your Commitment
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To pay regular contributions into your plan as defined under the contribution agreement with your
employer (where relevant).
To understand that the value of your fund will remain invested until you are entitled to take your
benefits.
To understand the risks detailed in the ‘Risks’ section of this document.
Risks
What you get back when you take benefits cannot be guaranteed, and may be lower than expected. This can happen for
a number of reasons, for example if:
 Contributions to your plan stop or are reduced
 You start taking your benefits earlier than your chosen retirement age
 Investment performance is lower than expected
 Our charges increase in future and/or Tax rules change
 Annuity rates are lower than expected
 You transfer all or part of your plan to another company/provider
The Complete Pension Trust can invest in a range of investment funds and the funds have different levels of risk. You
can find more information in the Investment Fund Guide.
If you’ve registered for enhanced protection or fixed protection, you may lose this entitlement under certain
circumstances, including setting up a new arrangement like this one, and/or paying contributions to any registered
pension scheme that relates to you. If this applies to you, please speak to a professional financial adviser.
The value of an investment and any income from it can fall as well as rise and is not guaranteed. You may get back less
than the amount originally invested.
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Questions and Answers
What is the Complete Pension Trust?
It is a savings plan that helps you save for retirement in a tax-efficient way. It can also pay out a lump sum or provide a
pension for your dependents if you die before you take benefits.
It is arranged for you by your employer. The scheme is set up under trust and managed by Charles Stanley (Trustees)
Limited.
Who can join the pension scheme?
It’s up to your employer or the scheme Trustees. There may be certain eligibility conditions and your employer will list
these in a letter to you. You can choose to join the scheme if you meet these conditions and your employer has invited
you to join.
Eligibility conditions will be the same for both men and women.
How flexible is it?
You and your employer can pay into your plan regularly. Depending on the way the scheme is set up, you may or may
not have to make regular contributions. You may also be able to make one-off contributions, subject to the approval of
the scheme Trustees.
If you do make regular contributions, or wish to change the level of your contributions, you may have to pay a certain
level of contribution, which is set by your employer.
You can stop or take a break from paying contributions at any time and leave your fund in the Complete Pension Trust.
However, any contribution break is likely to reduce your future pension and your employer’s contribution may depend
on you maintaining a certain level of contribution. You should speak to your employer to find out more if you are
thinking of taking a contribution break.
What might I get when I want to take benefits?
Your final plan value will depend on a number of factors including:
 How much is paid in
 How long you contribute to your plan
 Investment performance, which may go down as well as up
 Plan charges
When can I take my benefits?
You can take benefits from the Complete Pension Trust at any time from the age of 55 (including while you’re still
working). You may be able to take your pension earlier than age 55 if you’re in ill health.
What choices will I have when I decide to take my benefits?
When you decide to take benefits, you can buy a pension that suits you at that time. For example, you could buy:
 A pension that increases each year during payment, or
 A pension that pays out for a minimum period of up to 5 or 10 years, irrespective of when you die, or
 A pension for you that continues to a dependent after you die
You may be able to transfer your fund to an alternative retirement plan and take income withdrawals, known as a
drawdown pension.
Whichever option you select, you may also be able to take part of your fund as tax-free cash (usually 25%). This is
known as a Pensions Commencement Lump Sum (PCLS). We recommend you get professional financial advice for more
details about the options available to you.
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How much can be paid into my plan each tax year?
You and your employer can pay into your plan. Your employer decides on the level of regular contributions they and
you have to pay although your employer will usually allow you to make additional contributions through your payroll.
There may be a tax charge where contributions exceed your available annual allowance. The standard annual allowance
is £40,000 for 2015/16. Unused allowances from the previous three tax years can be utilised in addition if required.
What about tax?
Your contributions are paid gross, before deduction of income tax. Any tax relief will therefore be provided
automatically via payroll.
Growth in the value of the plan is free from capital gains tax and certain types of dividends paid to the plan are free
from income tax.
If the value of your pension benefits when you take them (not including any state retirement pension, state pension
credit or any dependant’s pension you may be entitled to) is more than your available lifetime allowance, you may
have to pay tax on the excess.
The lifetime allowance is the limit on the value of retirement benefits you can draw from approved pension schemes
before tax penalties apply. The standard lifetime allowance is £1.25 million for the tax year 2015/16. In certain
circumstances, you may have a higher lifetime allowance for benefits under primary, fixed or individual protection.
This information is based on our understanding of current taxation law and HMRC practice, which may change. The
value of any tax relief depends on your own individual circumstances.
We recommend you get professional financial advice if you need more information on tax.
What happens to my contributions?
We’ll invest all the contributions made by you and your employer. We will then deduct charges from your plan value as
detailed under the ‘Where can I find out about the charges?’ section below.
The plan offers a range of investment funds. The scheme Trustees will initially choose the fund(s) that contributions will
be invested in (known as the ‘default fund’). Details of the default fund and the wider range of investment funds
available are contained in the Investment Fund Guide.
Can I transfer benefits from another pension scheme?
If you have pension plans with other companies, or with previous employers, it may be possible to transfer the value of
these to your plan. It’s up to the scheme Trustees whether they accept transfer values.
We recommend you get professional financial advice before transferring pension benefits.
Where can I find out about the charges?
We charge for managing your plan and investments. These charges are reflected in the investment returns over the
period to when you take your benefits. Details of the specific charges for each investment fund are contained in the
Investment Fund Guide.
What happens to the plan if I die before I take benefits?
The value of your plan as a cash lump sum will be paid to one or more of your dependant(s) at the discretion of the
scheme Trustees.
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What happens if I stop contributing?
We don’t make any additional charges if you stop or take a break from contributing to your plan. However, we’ll
continue to deduct regular charges from your plan.
What happens if I leave the scheme?
You can leave the scheme even if you’re still working for your current employer. When you decide to take benefits,
you’d be entitled to the plan value at that time.
You can transfer the value of your plan to a registered pension scheme with another company at any time before you
start taking a pension.
If you later want to rejoin the scheme, you’ll need approval from your employer and you must meet the eligibility
conditions. Your employer doesn’t have to allow you to rejoin, although you may have a right to join a pension
scheme under auto-enrolment legislation.
What happens if I stop working for my current employer?
You have a number of options if you leave employment including:
 Leaving the money you’ve built up in your plan within the scheme (known as preserved benefits). This
money will then be available to buy a pension or take as a lump sum when you decide to take benefits. The
scheme Trustees will write to you to let you know your entitlement under the scheme and how to claim
your benefits at the normal retirement date or, if you wish, at an earlier date from age 55.
 Transferring your plan value out of the scheme to another registered pension scheme.
If you die before you start to take your benefits, we’ll use your plan value to buy benefits as described under the ‘What
happens to the plan if I die before I take benefits?’ section.
Can I transfer my fund out of the scheme?
You can transfer your plan to another registered pension scheme in your own name with an insurance company of your
choice or to a new employer’s registered pension scheme (as long as the Trustees of the new scheme agree).
How will I know how my plan is doing?
Every year we will send you a statement showing you how your plan is performing, how much your plan is worth,
how much has been paid in and your estimated pension at your chosen retirement age.
You can also access up-to-the-minute information about your plan online, whenever you want it, through our secure
online services (only available where we have been supplied with a valid e-mail address by your employer). We’ll
send you details on how to register once your plan has been set up.
Are there any additional requirements if I’m automatically enrolled?
If you’re automatically enrolled, and don’t opt-out, minimum contribution rates apply. Minimum contribution
rates apply to the total of employer and employee contributions. As part of this total minimum, there’s also a
separate minimum which employers must pay.
If your employer doesn’t pay the total minimum, by law, you must pay the difference. This is known as ‘the
shortfall’ and is the difference between the total minimum and the employer minimum. Your contributions will
be automatically increased to meet any shortfall where this applies.
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Other Information
How to complain
We hope you never have reason to complain, but if you do, the first step is to write to us. There is an Internal Dispute
Resolution Procedure (IDRP) which can be obtained upon request from HS Administrative Services Ltd (HS Admin).
If you’re not satisfied with our response, you can then raise the issue with one of the following organisations:
The Pensions Advisory Service
Phone: 0300 123 1047
Email: enquiries@pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk
Write to: The Pensions Advisory Service, 11 Belgrave Road, London, SW1V 1RB.
The Pensions Advisory Service is an independent government funded body. Their services are free to members of the
public about pensions and using them won’t affect your right to take legal action.
The Pensions Ombudsman
Phone: 020 7630 2200
Email: enquiries@pensions-ombudsman.org.uk
Write to: The Office of the Pensions Ombudsman, 11 Belgrave Road, London, SW1V 1RB.
The Financial Ombudsman Service
Phone: 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123
Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Write to: The Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR.
Trustees
The Trustees of the Complete Pension Trust are Charles Stanley (Trustees) Limited.
Law
The scheme is subject to English law.
How to contact us:
Complete Pension Trust
C/O HS Admin
25 Goodlass Road
Liverpool
L24 9HJ
e-mail: complete@hsadmin.com
Tel: 0151 448 5550
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This guide has been prepared based on our current understanding of workplace
pension reform and may be subject to change. It does not constitute financial advice
and should not be relied upon as such.
Charles Stanley Financial Solutions Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Charles
Stanley Group PLC and is registered in England – No. 2131269
Charles Stanley Financial Solutions Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial
Conduct Authority.
Document version 1.1 correct as of 01/05/2015
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