The level of your pension will depend on several factors:

• The amount of contributions that have been paid into your Pension Account
• How well the investments have performed
• The level of interest rates at the time of your retirement
• Your age at retirement
• Your health
• The type of Annuity you want.

Because arranging an Annuity is such an important decision and annuity rates can vary greatly we would advise you to seek independent financial advice about the types of annuity available to you. No one in the Company or the Trustees is authorised to give you advice about your options.

What exactly is the pension?

The pension is a monthly payment to you commencing at retirement, which is calculated based on a) your total monies in your account at retirement, b) your age and c) your sex.  The monthly payment is calculated based on actuarial rules and takes into consideration the type of pension you choose at retirement.

What are my choices for taking a pension at retirement?

1. Pension for life, guaranteed for a period of 5 years. This means that if you die before receiving 60 monthly payments, your named beneficiary will continue to receive the balance of the remaining 60 payments. If you die after receiving 60 monthly payments, no further payments will be made.
2. Pension for life, guaranteed for a period of 10 years. This means that if you die before receiving 120 monthly payments, your named beneficiary will continue to receive the balance of the remaining 120 payments. If you die after receiving 120 monthly payments, no further payments will be made.
3. A Survivor pension is a pension paid to you whilst you are alive and on your death, a pension for life is payable for a spouse which you had named at retirement. If your spouse should die before you, you will continue to receive monthly pension for life but no benefit will be paid to anyone else. However, if you should die before your named spouse, he/she will receive a monthly pension for their life. 

How do I claim for my retirement benefit?

For those persons who are at retirement age, the Company’s Human Resource Manager must take the following steps:

• The Pension Fund must be notified 3 months prior to retirement date but should be no later than 1 month, at which time information on the available pension benefits must are to be requested.

How is my retirement claim processed?

• The Pension Fund will immediately respond to the Company’s Human Resource Manager in writing, detailing the options that are available to the employee.
• The Human Resource Manager of the Company in conjunction with the General Manager and/or the employee’s immediate supervisor will meet with the employee and discuss the available options with the employee.  The employee must also be made aware that an attractive feature of the retirement benefit is that as a pensioner of the scheme he/she is still eligible to retain his/her membership on the Group Health Insurance Plan and Group Life Insurance Policy, at no cost to the employee.
• Once the employee has been advised of his/her options and a decision is made, the employee is to write a letter to the Pension Fund, detailing the type of pension benefit chosen. The effective date of retirement should be stated and the details of the method of payment included (i.e. whether by bank transfer, cheque by post or by whatever other method of payment stipulated by the employee).  If payment is to be made by bank transfer, the name of the bank, the branch and address along with the bank account number should be provided to the Pension Fund.  The retiring employee’s current address and telephone number must also be stated.

The employee must also ensure that the beneficiary stated is the beneficiary that they wish to receive their money a) should they die within the guaranteed period of 5 or 10 years, or b) if they have chosen a survivor pension. If this is not the case, then a pension change request form should be immediately filled out.  The retiring employee must provide the beneficiary’s address, telephone number and birth certificate. Additionally, the employee should be advised that should beneficiaries have a change in address or telephone number, the Pension Fund should be advised immediately.

Is it just the pension alone that I get when I retire?

No, as mentioned above, the good thing about the Appliance Traders Group Pension Fund is that when you are a pensioner, you continue to receive health insurance benefits and continue to be covered under the Group Life Insurance policy. On retirement, you will continue to receive the health insurance that you had before retirement (either basic or family but limited to a spouse). Every year you will receive this medical card, which will have the same benefits that all employees enjoy. Furthermore, you do not pay the premium; the Company pays it for you!

You must also remember to apply for your National Insurance Scheme (NIS) pension benefits and your refund of National Housing Trust contributions. If you need help on this you can speak to the Financial Controller in your Company, or contact the Administrator.