What is a fixed term annuity?

No one can predict the future, but you can help your clients plan for it.

Modern day retirement is changing. Instead of the traditional ‘once and done’ approach, flexible and tailored retirement plans can help meet the many different needs of those retiring today.

Our two fixed term annuity (FTA) plans, Fixed Term Retirement Plan and Cash-Out Retirement Plan, can provide a guaranteed income for a chosen period of time offering some security, control and a flexible approach to retirement planning for you and your clients.

They can give a range of possibilities for managing your clients income including covering essential spend, bridging an income gap and allowing your clients to keep their future income planning options open. They can also be an alternative to flexi-access drawdown.

 

  • Gives the security of a regular guaranteed income and the peace of mind that clients don’t need to worry about investment performance and the impact this could have on their pension savings. 
  • Can provide clients with an alternative to flexi-access drawdown.
  • Gives those who are risk-averse or concerned about market volatility the security of knowing exactly how much income they’ll receive and when.
  • Clients have the option to cash in the value of their plan at any time during the term, if they have chosen a guaranteed minimum payment period for the full term of the plan.
  • With our Fixed Term Retirement plan, clients who have chosen a guaranteed minimum payment period for the full term can take up to three withdrawals from their maturity value. This could help with an unexpected life event, for example emergency house repairs or medical expenses.
  • Provides the option of taking a pension pot as cash over several years to maximise tax efficiency.
  • With our Fixed Term Retirement Plan, clients can choose how much regular income they would like over their selected term, the maturity value they would like at the end of the term, or just to receive a maturity value with no income payments at all.
  • With the maturity value from the Fixed Term Retirement Plan, clients will be able to choose how to use their Maturity Value at the end of their plan.
  • Allows clients to keep their options open whilst receiving an income for a set period of time.
  • Can be used as an alternative to flexi-access drawdown.
  • Can help to bridge an income gap until another income becomes available, such as a final salary pension or State Pension.
  • It could allow clients to defer taking their State Pension, so that when they do take it, the payments they receive will be higher.
  • For clients who would like to reduce their working hours, it could help to top up their income until another income source becomes available.

If your client chooses a guaranteed minimum payment period, if they die during this time all payments due will continue to be paid to a beneficiary or their estate. If they choose it to last for the full plan term, then they will also have the following flexibility:

table
  Fixed Term Retirement Plan Cash-Out Retirement Plan
Make cash withdrawals1 Included Not included
Cash in or transfer the whole of the plan2 Included Included

1Your client has the option to take up to three withdrawals from the full maturity value. This can be done at any time during the term of the plan, and is subject to a minimum withdrawal of £5,000 each time. This will be subject to us deducting our administration and dealing costs and means the maturity value will be recalculated. Withdrawals are only available if they choose a guaranteed minimum payment period for the full term.

2Available at any time during the term of your client's plan. We’ll calculate this by giving a value to the future income payments and/or maturity due to them and deduct our administration and dealing costs. This will be affected by the underlying assets and interest rates at the time, which will go up and down.

table
 

Fixed Term Retirement Plan

Cash-Out Retirement Plan

Age Age 55 and over  Age 55 and over
Term  3 - 40 years  3 - 40 years 
Minimum invested £10,000  £10,000 
Regular income  

(can choose to not to take regular income)

 
Maturity value    
Option to select a maturity value without regular income payments    
Option to choose an increasing income in line with Retail Prices Index (RPI)1    
Option to select guaranteed minimum payment period    
Spouse/Dependent benefit    
Payment frequency options Monthly, quarterly, half yearly and yearly Monthly, quarterly, half yearly and yearly
Underwritten    

1RPI is the index of the average change in the prices of goods and services in the UK. Your client can choose to have the increase capped at 5%, referred to as the Limited Price Index (LPI). If they choose an income that increases over time, the income we’ll pay them to begin with will be lower than if they'd chosen a level income.

For our Fixed Term Retirement Plan

Once the term of your client's plan comes to an end and we've paid your client the maturity value, set at outset, your client will receive no more income from us.

The plan does not pay income for life. If your client uses the maturity value to provide them with further income, the value may not be enough to provide the same level of income that they were receiving during the plan term.

For our Cash-Out Retirement Plan

Once the term of your client's plan comes to an end, your client will receive no more income from us. There is no maturity value and there will be no other payments made. The plan does not pay income for life.

Contact centre

Broker Support Specialist Team

Speak to our team for help with your annuity quotes. Call our team on

0345 071 0040

Monday to Friday 9am – 4pm*

Or email them**

*Call charges will vary. We may record and monitor calls. 

**If you're contacting us by email please remember not to send any personal, financial or banking information belonging to you or your client because email is not a secure method of communication.

 

 

Key documents

 

 

Case studies

Our case studies shows how layering multiple solutions together throughout your client's retirement to help them achieve their objectives.

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