Your Annual Statement – bonus rates FAQs

Simply contact Member Services on 01689 891454 (Monday to Thursday 8:30 to 17:00, Friday 8:30 to 16:30) or email [email protected]  to provide your personal email address.

Your Annual Statement will be sent as a secure email attachment that can only be opened when you input your National Insurance (NI) number in the password box. You’ll find your NI number on your payslip, P60 and HMRC correspondence regarding tax, pension or any benefits.

You’ll find your NI number on your payslip, P60 and HMRC correspondence regarding tax, pension or any benefits.

Please ensure that you input the whole use capital letters when inputting your number, with NO spaces.

Work emails often block attachments, so a personal email address is preferable.

• A with-profits investment allows savers access to a fund, where their money is pooled with others’ and all share in the investment return.
• The share is in the form of annual (reversionary) bonuses added to the policy. Once added they cannot be taken away.
• A final bonus will often be applied at encashment if you invest for a minimum of three years. This is not guaranteed and will vary depending on the type of investment.

The fund is invested in a mix of equities, commercial property, corporate bonds and cash and therefore not solely dependent on one market.

Any payments made to our members by way of an annual or final bonus must reflect the way in which the value of the fund has performed throughout the period of investment.

The Society aims to avoid large changes in the bonuses paid from year to year by applying smoothing.

It is a process designed to protect the investor from sudden movements in the stock-market.

In practice, smoothing means we hold back some of the high investment returns from the good years and use them to boost with-profits payments in years where returns are lower.

The Society aims to keep charges for its costs as low as possible and these are reviewed annually.

All costs are deducted prior to annual and final bonuses being applied.

We do not pay commission to anyone.

• Bonuses take into account investment return less any expenses, smoothing, taxation and the cost of providing death benefits.
• The annual bonus is added to applicable plans on 31 December each year. Any that have been applied are guaranteed at maturity or on death.
• On your statement the ‘Bonus Rate’ that we paid at the end of last year is shown under the ‘New Annual Bonus’ column.
• The final bonus (also known as terminal bonus) may be added to your lump sum investment on or after the third anniversary. Other regular contribution contracts may attract a final bonus at maturity and this is factored into surrender values from the 6th anniversary onwards.
• The final bonus is for the first time shown on the annual statement for lump sums (where applicable). The rate reflects investment performance and is decided at the time of surrender. Please note the final bonus is not guaranteed and may fluctuate.

We have to reflect the return we make on our investments, even in bad times. Therefore, a negative bonus or market value reduction (MVR) may be applied to adjust the surrender values accordingly.

Please note that an MVR would not apply to maturity values or death claims.

The rates are difficult to compare but it is important to note that on conventional (CWP) savings plans our bonuses are calculated from and are added to the sum assured, not just the money you pay in.

Your statement covers the last complete calendar year up to 31st December only. If you have any queries about more recent transactions, please call Member Services on 01689 891454 (Monday to Thursday 8:30 to 17:00, Friday 8:30 to 16:30)

Please call Member Services on 01689 891454 to discuss your requirements. (Monday to Thursday 8:30 to 17:00, Friday 8:30 to 16:30)

Your statement covers the last complete calendar year up to 31st December 2023 only. If you have surrendered, withdrawn or cancelled a plan before then, they will not be detailed within your annual statement.

No, your statement covers the period to 31^st December 2023 and does not include any subsequent contributions nor bonuses which may be applicable when your plan is at maturity.

• View our current and previous bonus rates
• View the past performance of our savings plans. The past performance is not a guide to future returns.

• You can find out more about how we manage the With-Profits Fund here.
• Alternatively, you can call us on 01689 891454 or e-mail us at [email protected] for more information or with any questions you may have.