Skandia Collective Retirement Account
The provider of the Collective Retirement Account is Skandia MultiFUNDS Assurance Limited, which is a part of the Skandia UK group of companies, owned by Old Mutual plc. Old Mutual is an international financial services group with its headquarters in London. As a FTSE 100 company, Old Mutual plc is one of the 100 largest companies listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Having launched in the UK in 1979, Skandia UK Group now manages £33.9 billion of investors’ money in pensions, tax-efficient investments and protection products, as at 31 December 2010.
The Skandia Investment Solutions platform is an innovative way to manage your investments. It provides access to around 1,000 funds, together with a range of tax-efficient ways to hold these funds, within a single consolidated portfolio.
Consolidate and save – your retirement fund and investments all in one place working harder for you
The Skandia IS Collective Retirement Account is a low cost pension with access to a large number of funds. We do not charge any initial commission and only take an on-going fee of 0.25% p.a. We rebate 100% of renewal commission, which is usually 0.5%, enough to offset our fee and reduce the charges on your funds too.
Skandia charge an administration fee of £68.50 each year. The administration fee pays for all accounts on the Skandia IS platform. So, if you already have ISAs, a Collective Investment Account or Collective Investment Bond with Skandia you will already pay for this and there will be no further charges to set up a Collective Retirement Account.
Our fee and Skandia’s charge are taken directly from your pension fund. Individual fund management charges will apply depending on your fund choice. And that’s it – no initial charges – through CommShare – on any funds and no switch fees either.
Features of the Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account:
| Pension Type |
Personal Pension |
| Fund companies |
80 |
| Funds |
1,000 |
| Establishment charge |
£0 |
| Annual administration charge |
£68.50 |
| Switching charge |
Nil |
| Transfer in charge |
Nil |
| Minimum single contribution or transfer value |
£3,600 gross |
| Minimum regular contribution |
£99 gross p.m. / £3,600 gross p.a. |
| Protected rights permitted |
Yes |
| Employer contributions allowed? |
Yes |
When you reach retirement you can decide to take all of your benefits at the same time, or take only some of the benefits, allowing you greater flexibility. There are charges for taking benefits.
Download Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account Pension Application Forms and Key Features
You can invest by paper application – regular premiums from £99 gross p.m. and / or single gross payments / transfers of at least £3,600.
First, please make sure you read CommShare’s Key Facts document and Terms of Business.
Alternatively, request a Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account application pack by post – click here
Please send your completed application forms to CommShare, using our FREEPOST address. If you send them directly to Skandia Investment Solutions they won't accept them.
Transfer existing pensions into your Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account
You can transfer the following types of pensions into the Skandia Investment Solutions via CommShare.
| Other Personal Pension Plans |
Free Standing Additional Voluntary Contribution Plans (FSAVCs) |
| Stakeholder Pensions |
Paid up Group Personal Pensions or Group Stakeholder Pensions |
| Self Invested Personal Pensions |
Retirement Annuity Contracts (RACs) |
You cannot transfer occupational pensions into the Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account via CommShare and will need to seek appropriate advice from a qualified financial adviser if you wish to consider transferring benefits accrued in occupational schemes. These include:
| Additional Voluntary Contribution Plans |
Occupational Money Purchase Pensions (CIMP / COMP) |
| Executive Pension Plans (EPPs) |
Defined Benefit Schemes (Final Salary Scheme) |
If you are unsure as to whether your existing plan is a personal or an occupational plan, please contact us and we will be happy to help you.
You will also need to find out whether there are any transfer penalties on your existing pension, as these can sometimes be prohibitively high. Second, make sure that you will not lose any valuable benefits, such as guaranteed annuity rates or guaranteed investment growth rates, by transferring away from your existing arrangement.
If you wish to transfer any pensions, we can arrange for all of the correct paperwork to be sent to you. All you will need to do is sign and return to us along with your application forms in a FREEPOST envelope.
A word of warning: Please note that once you have transferred your pension, especially if it is more than a few years old, you will probably not be able to transfer your fund back into the same pension with the same company.
If you want to switch between Skandia Investment Solutions Collective Retirement Account funds online login or register here.
If you want to download a Skandia Collective Retirement Account pension fund switch instruction form click here.
Remember: that you cannot withdraw funds from your pension until you retire, the earliest you can retire and take benefits from a pension plan is currently 55. A pension is a long term investment and the funds held in your pension may go down as well as up. Remember tax reliefs may change depending on legislation and/or your personal circumstances. We are unable to offer you advice and if you are at all unsure, you should seek personal advice from a suitably qualified financial adviser.