Members Guide - Sept 2013

7/30/2019 Members Guide - Sept 2013

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Members GuideFrom September 2013

Further inormation:

www.gmgpensions.co.uk

PERMANENT & FIXED TERM CONTRACT EMPLOYEES


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4. Introduction

5. Joining the Plan

6. Your Contributions

7. Company Contributions

9. Investments

10. Lie Assurance Cover

11. Leaving Employment

12. Taking Retirement Benefts

Securing Pension Benefts

13. Looking Ater Your Money

14. PaySmart

18. Temporary Absence

Previous Pension Benefts

18. State Pensions

Page 19. Flexibility -

Ceasing Membership

Divorce

Data Protection Act

20. Tax Allowances

Complaints Procedure

21. External Agencies

Amendment o the Plan

and Discontinuance

Assigning Your Benefts

Plan Documentation

22. Glossary

27. Contact Details

Ctts


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Itrdcti

GMG Liestyle Plan is our own in-house company

pension scheme which is run rom Guardian

Media Groups pensions department - see back

cover or contact details.

You will have already received an explanatorybrochure about the Liestyle Plan. This guide and

the rest o the Liestyle Plan literature aims to

provide you with essential inormation to help

you get the best rom your membership o the

Company pension plan.

Where necessary, you should obtain your own

independent nancial advice. You should always

bear in mind that membership o the Liestyle Plan

is likely to orm only a part o your overall nancialarrangements and you should always be mindul

o other savings products in the market place.

We have tried to explain the issues as clearly

as possible and have kept the use o technical

expressions to a minimum. Please reer to the

glossary at the back o this guide which we hope

will be o help. The exact terms and conditions

governing the Plan are contained in the Trust

Deed and Rules which are available or inspectionon request to the pensions department. Every

eort has been made to accurately refect the

Trust Deed and Rules in this guide, but i there

are any dierences, the Trust Deed and Rules will

always take precedence.

A key part o your nancial planning is your

pension. Next to a mortgage it is probably the

single biggest investment you will make. As a

member o the Liestyle Plan you have an ideal

opportunity to build up the savings you will need

in retirement.

The earlier you start, the easier it is. As a rule

o thumb, i you envisage retiring on a pension

o hal to two thirds o your salary at retirement

which is generally accepted as a reasonable

retirement income then 15 to 20 per cent o

your earnings all your working lie needs to be

saved by you/your employer.

I you dont get started until

later you will need to save much

more to reach the equivalent

level o income. The

key is to start saving

as early as you can.

Jh Wdma

Pensions Manager

It is imprtatthat ydrstad adta rspsiilityr th chics

availal t ydr th Pla


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Jiig th Pla

Eligibility for the Lifestyle

Plan is governed by your

terms of employment.

You will have received details

of the arrangements for yourenrolment in the Plan when

you received your copy of the

explanatory brochure with

your job offer/contract.

5

Hw th Listyl Pla wrs

You save within an investment und and build a

pot o money (your personal Liestyle account)

that you use to buy an income when you retire.

You can choose to take up to 25% o this

money as a tax-ree lump sum when you retire.

The Company will pay money into your account

on your behal. The more you save, the more the

company pays in.

The income you get when you retire will

depend on the size o your personal

investment pot which in turn depends on

what youve saved, how investments have

perormed and also on the market rate or

buying a pension when you retire.

Yrctritis

Cmpayctritis

IvstmtRtrs

Tax-Fr

Lmp Sm

YrPsi

SpssPsi

PsiIcrass

P L u S : L I F e A S S u R A n C e & S T A T e b e n e F I T S o n T o P


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A grat way stig yrpsi rthr

is thrghAdditial

Vltary

Ctritis

6

Yr Ctritis

The Plan is registered with Her Majestys

Revenue and Customs (HMRC). This means that

membership o the Plan gives you the opportunity

to make signicant tax ecient savings towards

your uture and to benet rom substantial

contributions rom the company.

ordiary Ctritis

AsamemberofthePlanyourstandardrateof

contribution is 5% o your pensionable earnings.

Ifyouwish,youcanchoosetopayathalfrate

ie 2.5%. In this case the company will also

contribute at hal rate.

Rememberthatyousavetaxbypaying

contributions which reduces the cost to you *

see examples below. (Visit our website and try

out the easy to use calculator to see how much

tax you can save www.gmgpensions.co.uk ).

Examples o cost or monthly salary o 2000

YouR CHoSen

ConTRIbuTIon RATe5% 2.5%

Cst r tax savigs 100 50

Lss tax savd* 32 16

Actal cst t y 68 34

* Most members (except very low earners) will pay less National Insurance

contributions, as well as paying less income tax, by participating in

PaySmart. PaySmartis a way or you to make contributions to the

Liestyle Plan. Details oPaySmartare given on page 14 and on our

website www.gmgpensions.co.uk. The example above is based on

Income Tax and National Insurance rates or the 2013/2014 tax year.

Additial Vltary Ctritis

You can contribute up to 10% o your pensionable

earnings, and up to 15% o non pensionable

earnings, which also attract tax relie, thus

reducing the cost to you. A very attractive

advantage o the Liestyle Plan is that the

company will also help you by paying 50% on top

o whatever you contribute in AVCs.

You can pay a lump sum AVC each February

based on any taxable benets in kind you

receive. Ask the Pensions Department or more

details i you are interested in this.

You can also pay Extra Contributions (ECs) on top

o AVCs and standard contributions. ECs attracttax relie, but do not attract a company top up.

The maximum ECs you can pay will depend upon

your taxable earnings and payroll deductions,

such as National Insurance contributions,

healthcare premiums etc.

To start paying or increase ordinary contributions,

AVCs or ECs, just ask the Pensions Department or

a Contributions Form, or download one rom the

library on our website www.gmgpensions.co.uk .

There may be other ways o increasing your

pension benets which suit you and your personal

circumstances better than paying ECs through the

Liestyle Plan. Beore investing in any nancial

product you should take independent nancial advice.


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Th Cmpayis cmmittdt wrig i

partrship with

mplys t

hlp thm plaad prvid r

a cmrtal

rtirmt

7

It is possible to become a non contributing

member o the Liestyle Plan. In this case, you

would not pay any contributions but the company

would make a xed contribution o 2.5% o pay.

This category o membership is designed to help

employees make a start with their pension savings

when they cannot aord to pay themselves,

although it must be stressed that a contribution

o 2.5% alone cannot realistically be expected to

provide a sucient income in retirement.

The Government sets an annual allowance or tax

relie on pension contributions. See page 20 or

more details.

Cmpay Ctritis

I you pay the standard (5%) rate, the companys

contributions will depend on your age

AGe % oF PenSIonAbLe

eARnInGS

udr 45 8

45 49 9

50 54 10

55 59 11

60 pls 12

Th cmpay will als add 50% t ay AVCs

which y chs t ma.

In addition to the above, the company meets

the whole o the cost o lie assurance premiumsas well as paying all o the general administration

costs o running the Plan.

I you choose to pay at hal rate then the

Company will pay hal o the rates shown.

I you choose to become a non-contributing

member then the company will pay a xed rate o

2.5% o pay, irrespective o your age.

Visit our website and use the calculators to seehow you can maximise the contributions you get

rom the company - www.gmgpensions.co.uk


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nts Ctritis

Intheeventofunpaidtemporaryabsence

you will remain a member o the Liestyle Plan

although no contributions will be payable.

ContributionstotheLifestylePlaninrespect

o Maternity Pay, Paternity Pay or AdoptionLeave are calculated on the basis required by

legislation.

Forperiodsofunpaidmaternity,paternity,or

adoption leave, once you return to work the

Company will pay a lump sum contribution o

2.5% o your notional earnings (or the period o

unpaid leave) into your Liestyle account.

Contributionsareonlypayableinrespectof

Pensionable Earnings actually paid to you whilst

still in employment. Contributions are paid

over to the Liestyle Plan by the company and

credited to your Liestyle account normally on

the last business day o each month.

Inanyindividualcaseitmaybenecessaryto

suspend or reduce contributions to the Liestyle

Plan so that benets arising under the Plan do not

exceed the Lietime Allowance (see glossary).


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Ivstmts

Please reer to our separate Investment

Guide and website or detailed inormation

regarding your investment choices. Briefy, your

contributions, together with the companys

contributions and anything you transer in,

will all be allocated to your individual Liestyle

account. You will receive a benet statement

each year showing details o your individual

account. The statement will show the value o

the contributions you and the company have

made during the year and will also give details

o the way your account is invested.

Chic Fds

You have a choice over how to invest your

own Liestyle account. You can spread your

investment amongst the available unds

in whatever way you choose. It is always

important to keep an eye on your Liestyle

account and you may wish to move between

the available unds rom time to time.

You are able to speciy investment in any o

the ollowing unds in any proportions:-

The Long Term Fund

The Short Term Fund (Bonds Section)

The Short Term Fund (Cash Section)

UK Equity Fund

Overseas Equity Fund

Ethical Global Equity Fund

Corporate Bond Fund

UK Government Stocks Fund

Index-Linked UK Government Stocks Fund

Atmatic Ivstmt Stratgy

I you dont eel comortable managingyour own investments, there is an automatic

arrangement. Under this arrangement, your

account is normally invested in the Long Term

Fund, which is currently invested in a mixture

o Equities and Bonds. The value o these

investments can be volatile rom time to time

and can sometimes suer sharp setbacks in

times o economic or political diculty. Despite

this volatility and the absence o guarantees,these types o investments are nevertheless

generally considered to provide an appropriate

vehicle or long term growth.

As you approach retirement, it is usually helpul

to try to reduce volatility by switching your

Liestyle Account into the Short Term Fund

which is currently invested in Bonds and Cash.

Whilst Bonds can fuctuate, they tend to move

in line with interest rates generally thus giving

some stability to the pension which you can

purchase with your accumulated account.

However, Bonds cannot protect against

changes in other actors which insurance

companies use to determine annuity rates

such as mortality trends. You should also bear

in mind that the Short Term Fund might not

be appropriate i you intend to choose a non-

conventional annuity or income draw down

arrangement (see the Liestyle Plan literature

or more inormation regarding these choices

at retirement).

Under the deault arrangements, your

investments are normally automatically

switched over the ten years beore your

retirement rom the Long Term Fund into the

Short Term Fund. In each o the ten years until

retirement 10% o your accumulated account

will be switched, so that during the last year

beore retirement, the whole o your account

will be in the Short Term Fund. Your retirementdate or this purpose is set to the deault (age

65) although you can speciy your own Target

Retirement Date thus giving you control over

the switching into the Short Term Fund. You

can change your Target Retirement Date at

any time.

The deault strategy has been designed to

provide a careully worked out investment

strategy that can be suitable or many

members through their careers. However,

there could be a number o reasons why

you might want to override the automatic

arrangements and make your own investment

choices, perhaps ater seeking independent

nancial advice.


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1010

Li Assrac Cvr

Ctritry Mmrs

In the event o your death in employment whilst

a contributing member o the Liestyle Plan,

the ollowing lump sum benet would become

payable:-

a) 3 times your Death Benet Salary plus the

part o your account relating to your own

AVCs and ECs.

pls

b) The greater o:-

4timesyourDeathBenetSalary(plusthepart

o your account relating to any transer rom a

previous scheme)

r

thevalueofyourLifestyleaccountexcluding

the part relating to your own AVCs and ECs

The lump sum would be payable under trust and is

currently tax ree provided it is below the Lietime

Allowance - see Glossary.

n Ctritry Mmrs

In the event o your death in employment whilst a

non contributing member o the Liestyle Plan, the

ollowing benets would become payable:-

A lump sum o 3 times your Death Benet Salaryplus a urther lump sum equal to the value o your

Liestyle account. The lump sum would be payable

under trust and is currently tax ree provided it is

below the Lietime Allowance - see Glossary.

nts Dath i emplymt bfts

The trustees have eected insurance cover in

respect o the liabilities or death benets to the

extent that they exceed the values o members

Liestyle accounts. In some cases it may benecessary to restrict the amount o lie assurance

cover where the trustees insurance o the benet

has been restricted by the insurers.

Special conditions will apply to the death benets

i you re-enter the Liestyle Plan ater ceasing

active membership or join at a date later than

when rst eligible.

All benets payable on death in employment

are subject to HMRC limits and may need to

be restricted to ensure they do not exceed the

prevailing limits.


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Lavig emplymt

Fr vry jiig th Pla , r atr,

1st Sptmr 2013, trmiati

mplymt th llwig ptis ar

availal:

(a) All o the money paid into your Liestyleaccount can remain invested until you retire, when

it can be used to buy a pension in the normal way.

This includes your contributions and all o the

money paid by the company. You can still choose

rom the ull range o investment options.

() At any time you can choose to transer your

ull account to another pension arrangement.

Fr ay wh jid th Pla prir t 1stSptmr 2013, ad wh lavs r

cmpltig tw yars qaliyig srvic,

y ca ithr:

(a) Take a reund o the value o your

contributions (any reund is subject to tax)

r

() Within six months o leaving, you can transer

out the ull value o your account to anotherpension arrangement.

Paymt lmp sm Dath bfts

Lump sum benets arising on death are paid

under trust. This means that the trustees have

to decide who is to receive the benet. The

purpose o this arrangement is to ensure that the

payment is ree rom inheritance tax under current

legislation and that it can be paid quickly without

needing to wait or probate etc.

Although the trustees have the nal decision

as to who should receive any death benet you

are encouraged to complete a nomination

orm to indicate your wishes regarding possible

Beneciaries.

You should keep this orm up to date i yourcircumstances change.


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Taig Rtirmt bfts

The table below shows when Liestyle Plan benets can be taken.

nrmal Rtirmt Ag

The Plans Normal Retirement

Age is 65, however your own

Target Retirement Date

(TRD) is more important.

TRD controls the timing

o the switching o your

Liestyle account rom

the Long Term und in to

the Short Term Fund. You

can set your TRD to suitwhen you think you will

take your retirement

benets.

Scrig Psi bfts

Your pension is normally secured by the trustees

by the purchase o an annuity with an insurance

company. (Other options are available, via your

adviser, and are brought to the attention o

members in the brochure Your Pension - Your

Choice).

The Liestyle Plans advisers are responsible or

advising the trustees on the choice o insurance

companies or the purchase o each members

benets. Quotations are always obtained or each

members benets at the time o retirement rom

the panel o insurance companies as notied by

the advisers. However, you can i you wish speciy

any insurance company to be used or the purpose

o securing your benets.

I you joined theLiestyle Plan beore6th April 2006

I you joined theLiestyle Plan on or ater6th April 2006

TAke beneFITS AnD SToP

WoRkInG AT GMG

TAke beneFITS AnD CARRY on

WoRkInG AT GMG

Ys, rm ag 50 Ys, t ly rm ag 55

Ys, t ly rm ag 55 Ys, t ly rm ag 55


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All o your account can be used to secure pension,

and you will be able to choose the level o any

built-in increases and the level o built-in spouses

pension.

You may elect to take a tax ree lump sum o anyamount up to the maximum laid down in the Trust

Deed and Rules which refects the requirements

o Her Majestys Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

This is typically 25% o your individual account at

retirement.

Details o the choices available to you at

retirement can be requested rom the Pension

Department at any time.

Lig atr yr my

The day to day running o the Liestyle Plan is

dealt with rom the Guardian Media Groups

pensions department - see back cover or contact

details.

The Liestyle Plan has trustees who are ultimately

responsible or the proper running o the Plan.

Some o the trustees are elected by the members.

The trustees have adopted regulations governingthe procedures or election o trustees which they

may review and amend rom time to time.

Audited accounts are prepared every year and are

available or inspection.

Additional inormation is disseminated to

members on a regular basis in the orm o

newsletters (also including a summary o the

audited accounts), statements o account,

illustrations o benets and via our website,

www.gmgpensions.co.uk .

The Liestyle Plans investments are

handled by independent investment

managers appointed by the trustees. The

investment returns are regularly monitored

by independent advisers. The costs o

investment management are deducted

rom the unds. Each year you will be given

details o the investment returns along

with other nancial inormation about theLiestyle Plan. Every week the latest unit

prices are available on our website at

www.gmgpensions.co.uk .

Your money is held in a und that the

Company cannot touch. The value o

your Liestyle account may go up or down

depending on investment returns. Whilst

there are no guarantees about how much

your pension will be when you retire, theCompany cannot access your money once it

is in your Liestyle account.


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Hw ds PaySmart actally wr?

Youagreetogiveuppartofyourcontractualpay

equivalent to the contribution you would have

paid to the Liestyle Plan. Your gross pay reduces.

Atthesametimeyoustoppayingdirect

contributions into the Plan and your net pay

rises by the amount o the National Insurance

contributions you would have paid on your Plan

contributions.

TheCompanyincreasesitscontributionsto

the Plan by the amount you would have paid

in so that the total contribution paid into your

personal account in the Plan is unchanged.

YourpaybeforetheadjustmentforPaySmart

will continue to be used or the calculation othe benets provided by the Plan and all other

contractual benets provided by the Company

(but not State benets). Your pay will be

reviewed annually in the normal way.

Hw mch natial Israc will y sav

thrgh PaySmart?

The National Insurance savings you can make

depend on how much you earn and the level o your

contributions to the Liestyle Plan. E.g. or the taxyear 2013/14 the National Insurance rates were:

12% on annual earnings between 7,755 and

41,450

2% on annual earnings over 41,450.

The table below shows examples o the annual

National Insurance savings based on dierent

contribution rates and a range o salaries.

Pensionable

Earnings

National

InsuranceSaving Member

paying 2.5%

Contributions

National

InsuranceSaving Member

paying 5%

Contributions

National

Insurance SavingMember paying

5% Contributions

and 10% AVCs

20,000 60.00 120.00 360.00

30,000 90.00 180.00 540.00

50,000 25.00 50.00 150.00

Figures are or illustration purposes only and are based on National

Insurance rates applicable or the tax year 2013/14.

PaySmart - a smartway payig r yrpsi

PaySmart is a more tax efcient

way o making your contributions

to the Liestyle Plan, which saves

both you and the Company

money. A major advantage o

paying contributions into pension

schemes, such as the Liestyle

Plan, is that you pay less income

tax. By paying your contributions

via PaySmart, you also pay less

National Insurance contributions.


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erllig i PaySmart

The Company will automatically enrol you

in PaySmartas soon as you join the Liestyle

Plan, unless you conrm beorehand that

you dont want to be included. However,

you wont be enrolled in PaySmarti you

earn less than a certain level o pay (7,800a year or 2013/2014), since some o your

State benets could be adversely aected.

The minimum pay level or inclusion in

PaySmartis reviewed each year.

Why d w prat PaySmart?

The cost o providing a pension has risen

signicantly in recent years. PaySmart is a

way or both members o the Liestyle Plan

and the Company to make savings in away that is acceptable to HM Revenue &

Customs. Your savings increase your take-

home pay, or you can use these savings

to increase your pension contributions.

The Company uses its saving on National

Insurance to help meet a small proportion o

its signicant contributions to the Plan.

D thr cmpais prat similar

arragmts?Yes, including many large employers like

Tesco, Sainsburys, BT and Orange.

Am I ligil r PaySmart?

Most Plan members are automatically

eligible or PaySmart. However, PaySmart

may have a negative impact on the

entitlement to some State benets or

members who earn less than a certain level

o pay (7,800 or 2013/2014). For thisreason, they are not automatically eligible or

PaySmart, although they may participate at

their request, having weighed up all the pros

and cons.

Any members whose pay would be reduced

below the National Minimum Wage as a

result o PaySmartare also excluded in order

to comply with this requirement.

What i I dt wat t pay myctritis via PaySmart?

You can choose not to participate in

PaySmartat anytime by completing a Non-

participation in PaySmart orm available on

the pensions website.

PaySmart ad AVCs

I I pay Additial Vltary

Ctritis (AVCs) r extra

Ctritis (eCs), will ths

icldd i PaySmart?

Yes, unless you choose not to participate

in PaySmart, all contributions that you paywill be made via PaySmart. Remember that

the more contributions you pay through

PaySmart, the less you pay in National

Insurance.


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PaySmart ad yr payad fts

Will my thr pay-rlatd fts

asd my rdcd pay, atr

ctritig thrgh PaySmart, r my

rigial ctractal pay?

None o the earnings-related benets you

receive as part o your Company benets

package will be aected. And your contractual

pay beore PaySmartwill continue to be used to

calculate any bonuses or pay increases.

Hw ds PaySmart act my thr

Cmpay fts?

PaySmartis part o your contractual terms and

conditions because your gross pay is reduced

and an additional pension payment is made

by the Company instead. Its your contractual

pay beore the PaySmartreduction that is used

to determine any other pay and pay-related

benets your lie assurance cover, sick pay,

shit pay and severance terms etc. So there will

be no reduction in your Company benets or

other pay as a result o being in PaySmart.

As my ctractal pay is rdcd dr

PaySmart, will this act th amt

mrtgag r la I cld rciv?

No. As now, reerence letters provided by the

Company or mortgage or loan purposes

will reer to your contractual pay beore any

adjustment or PaySmart.

PaySmart ad Stat fts

Hw ds PaySmart act my Stat

psi fts?

Your Basic State Pension will not be aected

i you make PaySmartcontributions.

As well as the Basic State Pension, theState currently provides an earnings-

related pension (known as the State

Second Pension, or S2P). I you earn

between 15,000 and 40,040 a year

(2013/14 tax year), PaySmartwill result in

a small reduction in the amount o your

S2P entitlement. Typically, however, this

reduction will be more than oset by the

saving you make in National Insurance

Contributions.

Is PaySmart sital r vrydy?

The Company does not possess enough

detailed inormation about your personal

circumstances to conrm denitively

whether you may be adversely aected.

Thereore, you should consider your own

circumstances based on the inormation

in this guide. This will be o particular

relevance to you i you are in receipt o Child

Tax Credits or Working Tax Credits. It may

also aect the calculation o any statutory

maternity, paternity or adoption pay.

Will th CSA paymts I ma

actd?

Possibly. CSA payments are calculated

using your weekly net income (gross weekly

income less income tax, National Insurance

and pension contributions). Participating

in PaySmartresults in an increase in yournet pay. I your net weekly pay increases,

it could be that CSA payments would also

increase. However, the CSA only need to be

advised i your net weekly income changes

by 5% or more.

What at stattry pay r

matrity lav?

Statutory maternity pay (SMP) will be

based on your pay ater any reduction dueto PaySmart. This means that SMP would

reduce slightly or someone participating in

PaySmart. I you think you may be in receipt

o SMP in the near uture then you should

consider whether to continue participating

in PaySmart.

Ca I chs t t ctrit

via PaySmart?

We believe the vast majority o members willbenet rom PaySmart. But i you dont want

to participate in PaySmartyou dont have to.

To stop paying contributions via PaySmart,

youll need to complete a Non-Participation

in PaySmart orm. But remember, i you


17/28

1717

choose not to participate in PaySmart, you wont

be taking advantage o the National Insurance

savings you could otherwise make.

I I chs t t participat iitially ca I

cm ac it PaySmart?

Yes, you can come back into PaySmartby

completing a Request to participate in PaySmartorm. Please contact the Pensions Department i

you wish to do this.

What d I d t d t ft rm

PaySmart?

You dont need to do anything. I you are eligible

to contribute via PaySmart, all your contributions

will automatically be paid via PaySmart.

Ca th Cmpay withdraw PaySmart?PaySmartis a contractual change to your earnings

and contributions to the Plan. However, because

circumstances can change, the Company reserves

the right to withdraw PaySmartand reintroduce

direct employee contributions. Your contractual

earnings would then be increased by the amount

o your Plan contribution to what they would have

been had PaySmartnever existed. The Company

does not accept any liability or responsibility to

provide any orm o compensation or any benets

lost rom ceasing to operate PaySmart.

Cld HM Rv & Cstms a

PaySmart?

At present, the Revenue allows the PaySmart

scheme to operate. However, a change in the law

or in Revenue practice could mean that PaySmart

will need to be withdrawn. I this happens, we

will let you know. Rest assured, though, that thesignicant Company contributions will remain.


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1818

Tmprary Asc

Contractual paid leave is treated normally

or every purpose o the Liestyle Plan. In

the event o temporary absence or other

reasons it may be necessary to restrict the

amount o death in employment benets

where the trustees insurance o the benethas been restricted by the insurers.

Prvis Psi bfts

I you have pension benets with your

previous employers company pension

scheme, or perhaps in a personal pension,

you may wish to transer these in to the

Liestyle Plan. Please contact the pensions

department i you are interested intranserring previous pension benets.

Stat Psis

The State scheme currently consists o two

levels o benet:

The Basic State Pension

The State Second Pension (S2P)

The Basic State Pension is a fat rate old age

pension, paid to everyone who has paid

sucient National Insurance Contributions,

and is unaected by your membership o

the Liestyle Plan.

S2P was introduced in 2002, replacing the

previous second tier o state pension, the

State Earnings Related Pension Scheme

(SERPS). You accrue S2P depending on thelevel o your earnings and the National

Insurance Contributions you pay.

You can request an estimate o your State

Pension online at: www.gov.uk/state-

pension-statement .

Under the current state scheme, members

with relatively low earnings and who

may get small private pension benets

at retirement could potentially receivelower means-tested state benets rom

the Government. It is impossible to know

precisely what state benets will be in uture

and to what extent they will be means-

tested. Thereore, it is extremely dicult

or anyone to advise relatively low paid

members whether or not to contribute to the

Liestyle Plan and build up a relatively small

pension und which might reduce the level

o uture state benets.

Planned Changes A Single Tier State

Pension?

Government proposals, announced in 2013,

(Parliament has to agree to changes

before they become law) are:-

Anewsingle-tierStatepensionof144per

week(intodaysearningsterms)willbe

introducedfrom6April2016.ThiswillapplytonewpensionersreachingStatePension

Ageonorafterthisdate.

Thenewbenetwillreplacethecurrent

BasicStatePension,SecondStatePension

andPensionCredit,resultinginareduction

ofpensionermeans-testing.

Thenumberofqualifyingyearsrequiredto

receivethefullStatepensionentitlementwillincreaseto35years.Thisislongerthanthe

currentrequirementof30yearstoqualify

fortheBasicStatePension,butremains

lowerthanthe44yearsformenand39

yearsforwomenrequiredpriorto2010.


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19

Flxiility - Casig activmmrship whil stillwrig at GMG

You can do this: For example, you could

transer your accumulated Liestyle account

elsewhere (or wider investment choices)

or, rom age 55 onwards, you could takeretirement benets, whilst still working at

GMG. You will also immediately rejoin the

Plan (ater 28 days notice) and build up

a new liestyle Plan account. Contact the

pension department i you are interested.

Divrc

In the event o your divorce, one o the

options available or dealing with your

benets under the Liestyle Plan is or the

court to make a Pension Sharing order.

The order would speciy an amount to be

deducted rom your Liestyle Account. The

amount could then be transerred into a

pension arrangement nominated by your

ex-spouse.

The Trustees have established scales o

administration charges or dealing with

Pension Sharing court orders. These charges

would be payable by divorcing couples.

Details o the charges are available rom the

pensions department.

Data Prtcti Act

Under the Data Protection Act 1998, the

Trustees and your employer have a legal

obligation and a legitimate interest to

process data relating to you or the purpose

o administering and operating the Plan

and associated benets. This may includepassing on data about you to the Plans

actuary, auditor, administrator and such

other third parties as may be necessary or

the administration and operation o the Plan

and associated benets. The inormation is

kept secure and is only disclosed in limited

circumstances.

By joining the Plan you are agreeing to this

data being held and used in this way. It isimportant that the data held about you is

correct. You should notiy the Trustees (via

the pensions department at the address

shown on the back page) and your employer

(please see HR Department) o any change

to your personal circumstances which may

result in a change to the data held in respect

o you. You should also notiy the Trustees

and your employer i you suspect that there

are inaccuracies in this data.

StatePensionAgewillbereviewedevery

veyearsbasedontheprinciplethatState

pensionshouldbereceivedforaspecic

proportionofanadultslife.

Currentpensionersandeveryonereaching

StatePensionAgebeforetheintroduction

oftheat-ratepensionwillcontinueto

receivetheirStatePensioninlinewith

existingrules.

The state system is already highly complex

and subject to uture changes, particularly

with changes in government. For low

earners, what is currently uncertain is

whether, when you retire, your private

savings could reduce your entitlement to

state benets. What is certain is that any

pension benets you save or personally will

be yours at retirement. Also remember that

i you save or your pension in the Liestyle

Plan you will benet rom signicant

Company contributions.

You can get more inormation on all aspects

o the State Pensions rom the Governmentsocial website: www.gov.uk/state-

pension.


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20

Tax Allwacs

Ctritis

To qualiy or tax relie, total contributions

(rom both you and the Company

and across all tax-approved pension

arrangements) in any year must be within

the Annual Allowance. For the purposes othe Plan, the year over which you will be

assessed will be each Plan year.

The Annual Allowance is 50,000 or

2013/2014, but reduces to 40,000 or

2014/2015. Any excess contributions over

the Annual Allowance will be taxed at your

ull marginal rate o income tax.

I any individual exceeds the AnnualAllowance (AA) in any tax year, rather than

immediately triggering additional tax, they

can carry orward any unused AA rom

the previous 3 years to oset this years

contributions.

bfts at Rtirmt

There is a limit on the total value o pension

benets that qualiy or tax relie. This

limit is known as the Lietime Allowance

and applies to all o the benets you build

up over your entire working lie across all

pension schemes. The limit is 1.5m until

5th April 2014. From 6th April 2014, the limit

will reduce to 1.25m.

I you build up benets above the Lietime

Allowance, they will be subject to tax,although the Government intends to allow

individuals to protect their rights where they

have already built-up large benets prior to

5th April 2014.

Few members are likely to build up a und

value even approaching the Lietime

Allowance. However, i you think you may

be aected by this limit please contact the

Pension Department or an estimate o thevalue o your Liestyle Plan benets.

Cmplaits Prcdr

The Trustees o the Liestyle Plan have

established procedures or dealing

with disputes in accordance with the

requirements o the Pensions Act 1995.

In the rst instance it is hoped that all

questions and complaints will be dealt with

successully on an inormal basis either by

the pensions department or in some cases

by individual trustees. However, i you are

dissatised with the response to a question

or complaint and wish to bring a ormal

complaint you will need to ollow the ormal

procedures.

I you wish to make a ormal complaint you

should contact the pensions department orMembers Notes on the Internal Disputes

Resolution Procedure and a orm to use in

making the complaint.

The rst stage o the procedure is initiated

by either yoursel, or someone nominated to

act on your behal, making a complaint to

J. Woodman, Pensions Manager, Guardian

Media Group plc (address on back cover).

On receiving your complaint the pensionsmanager will respond to it within two

months.

I you are dissatised with the reply you

receive you may reer the case to the

trustees or reconsideration. On receiving

your complaint the Trustees will respond to it

within two months.


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21

extral Agcis

Th Psis Advisry Srvic (TPAS)

The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) is

an independent voluntary service that

provides ree help and advice to members

and other beneciaries o occupational and

personal pension schemes. TPAS is availableat any time to assist members and other

beneciaries o the Plan, in connection with

any pensions query they have or any diculty

they have ailed to resolve with the trustees

or administrators o the Plan. You can contact

TPAS through your local Citizens Advice

Bureau or at 11 Belgrave Road, London,

SW1V 1RB.

Tel: 0845 6012923Website: www.pensionadvisoryservice.org.uk

Th Psis omdsma

The Pensions Ombudsman can investigate

and determine any complaint or dispute

o act or law relating to an occupational

pension scheme made or reerred in

accordance with the Pensions Act 1993. The

Ombudsman may be contacted at

11 Belgrave Road, London, SW1V 1RB.

Tel: 020 7630 2200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk

Hw t trac ld psis

The Trustees have given inormation about

the Plan, including details o an address

at which they can be contacted, to the

Register o Occupational and Personal

Pension Schemes. A tracing service run bythe Registrar may be o help to you i you

need to contact the trustees o a previous

employers pension scheme and cannot

trace them yoursel. The Pensions Tracing

Service can be contacted at Pension Tracing

Service, Tyneview Park, Whitley Road,

Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE98 1BA.

Tel: 0845 6002 537

Th Psis Rglatr (TPR)

TPR is a regulatory body that is responsible

or overseeing the running o occupational

pension schemes and is able to intervene

where trustees, employers or proessional

advisers have ailed in their duties. TPR may

be contacted at Napier House, Traalgar Place,

Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 4DW.

Tel: 0845 600 0707Email: [email protected]

Website: www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk

Amdmt thPla ad Disctiac

The Trust Deed and Rules contains

provisions or the amendment o the Plan

and also or the termination o the Plan

or the termination o participation in the

Plan o any employer. In the event o anyemployer ceasing to contribute to the Plan

any relevant members accounts would be

used to secure benets or or in respect o

each relevant member. In such a case you

would receive the appropriate amount o

notice.

Assigig yr fts

You are not allowed to assign your benets

under the Plan or use them as security or

a loan.

Pla Dcmtati

Any Plan member may request to see the

Trust Deed and Rules and the latest annual

report and accounts.


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2222

Glssary

This glossary aims to provide a relatively

straightorward explanation o some o the

technical expressions used in this Members Guide.

The exact interpretation o words used is always

subject to the denitions used in the Trust Deed

and Rules o the Liestyle Plan.

Additial Vltary Ctritis

In addition to Ordinary Contributions o 5% o

your pay, you can also pay Additional Voluntary

Contributions (or AVCs). You can contribute up

to 10% o pay as AVCs.

For every 1 you pay as AVCs, the Company

pays 50p more into the Liestyle Plan. So, i you

contribute AVCs o 10% o your pay, the Companywill contribute a urther 5% o your pay.

Aal Allwac

The total contributions in respect o an individual

(employee and company) paid into the Liestyle

Plan, plus any other pension arrangement, that

are eligible or tax relie. The Annual Allowance is

50,000 or 2013/2014, but reduces to 40,000

rom 6th Apr il 2014.

Aity

An annuity is the pension purchased at retirement

using your Liestyle Account (ater taking any tax-

ree cash). An annuity is payable or your lietime

and can continue at a lower level to your spouse in

the event o your death ater retirement.

bfciary

This means one or more persons or bodies as the

trustees consider would be appropriate recipients

o all or part o the lump sum benets payable on

a Members death.

Civil Partr

A partner o the same sex with whom you haveentered into a legally recognised relationship (i.e. a

civil partnership). Civil Partnerships rst started in

the UK on 5th December 2005.

Crprat bds

These are similar to government bonds, but they

are issued by non government agencies and

companies. Interest is paid at a xed rate over

the term o the bond and the capital is repaid at

the end o the term. Corporate bonds are rated byindependent organisations according to their ability

to be able to pay the interest payments and the

capital at the end o the term. Investment grade

bonds are those rated AAA, AA, A and BBB, with

the highest rating AAA, ollowed by AA, A and BBB.

Corporate bonds rated below this are known as sub

investment grade, high yield or junk bonds.

The Liestyle Plan unds only invest in investment

grade bonds rated AAA, AA and A. See theInvestment Guide or urther details.

Dath bft Salary

This means the highest total o any consecutive

12 months Pensionable Earnings in the 48 months

prior to date o death.


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2323

Dfd Ctriti Psi Schm

See Money Purchase Pension Scheme on page 25.

eqitis

Ordinary shares in companies ie stock market

investments. In the context o the Liestyle

Plan we usually mean investment in a pooled

und which comprises shares in a wide rangeo companies rather than shares in just one

company. UK equities reers to pooled unds

investing in companies quoted on the London

Stock Exchange although most o these

companies do have trading operations all over the

world. Similarly each o the overseas regions (eg

Europe, North America, etc) reers to the stock

market grouping or the particular pooled und.


24/28

2424

extra Ctritis

I you are already contributing Ordinary

Contributions o 5% o your pay and Additional

Voluntary Contributions o 10% o your pay, you

can still save even more into the Liestyle Plan. Such

urther savings would be Extra Contributions (ECs).

Whilst the Company does not pay any morecontributions in respect o your ECs, you would still

get tax relie on them.

Gvrmt Stcs

Sometimes called Gilts. These are securities issued

by the UK government and thereore the interest

payments and the capital repaid at the end o

the term are guaranteed and can be regarded as

absolutely secure.

Listyl Acct

We allocate all your contributions and the

Companys contributions or you into your Liestyle

account which is then invested. Your Liestyle

account is thereore part o the overall unds o the

Liestyle Plan, but we keep track o the contributions

and changes in value or each member separately.

Lg Trm Fd

This is part o the Liestyle Plans unds. It is our ownin-house description or the und which is designed

to meet the needs o a typical member during the

majority o his or her career. It will be invested in

the types o investments which suit this objective.


25/28

2525

Litim Allwac

This is the limit on the amount o an individuals

pension benet (unds) that qualies or tax relie.

It applies when benets are taken and applies

to all pension benets that individuals build up

over their entire working lie accross all pension

schemes.

The lietime allowance is reducing to 1.25m rom

April 2014. (For 2013/2014 it is 1.5m)

My Prchas Psi Schm

The Liestyle Plan is sometimes reerred to as a

Money Purchase pension scheme or a Dened

Contribution pension scheme. This means that

contributions made by you and the company

are invested until you are ready to draw your

benets. The benets at retirement may bepartly in the orm o a lump sum and the balance

o your accumulated account is then normally

used to buy an annuity with an insurance

company. There are a variety o choices available

to you at retirement see Liestyle booklet Your

Pension Your Choice or more inormation.

ordiary Ctritis

In the Liestyle Plan, members have a

choice o how much to pay. They can contribute0%, 2.5% or 5% o pay as Ordinary Contributions.

The more a member pays, the higher the

Companys contributions into the Liestyle Plan.

Further contributions can be made, in the orm

o Additional Voluntary Contributions and Extra

Contributions.

PaySmart

A eature o the Liestyle Plan that enables you to

pay your ordinary contributions, AVCs and ECs in

a more tax ecient manner, meaning both you

and the company pay less National Insurance

contributions, in addition to you paying less

Income Tax.

Psial earigs

This means actual salary including bonuses or

overtime. Any such item may be excluded i

notied by the company beore it is paid.


26/28

26

I y dt lcmrtalmaagig yr

w ivstmts,thr is a

atmatic

arragmt

26

Shrt Trm Fd

This is a part o the Liestyle Plans unds. It is our

own in-house description or the und which is

designed to meet the needs o a typical member

as he or she approaches retirement. It will be

invested in the types o investments which suitthis objective.

Stat Psi Ag

This is the age at which your State Pension is

payable and is specic to your date o birth.

You can check your own State Pension Age on the

online calculator at www.gov.uk/calculate-state-

pension

Switchig

In our deault arrangement, investments in your

Liestyle account are automatically moved rom

the Long Term Fund into the Short Term Fund

as you approach retirement to gradually reduce

volatility. For many members this can be a suitable

arrangement and it is thereore a vitally important

eature o the Liestyle Plan. This is now oten

reerred to as liestyle switching and is refected

in the name o our company pension plan!

Targt Rtirmt Dat (TRD)

This is the date you set or yoursel to control the

timing o the switching o your Liestyle account

rom the Long Term Fund into the Short Term

Fund. It does not mean you must retire at TRD. It

is simply the way in which you can have personalcontrol over your Liestyle account in the years

leading up to your expected retirement. You can

change your TRD at any time to refect the best

estimate o when you think you may draw your

benets.


27/28

2727

Ctact DtailsFor urther inormation

about the Liestyle

Plan, please contact the

Pensions Department.

See overlea or details.


28/28

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The Pensions DepartmentGuardian Media Group plcCenturion House, 129 Deansgate,Manchester M3 3WR

Tel: + 44 (0)20 3353 2000Fax: + 44 (0)20 3353 3125

Email: [email protected]

Documents

Members Guide - Sept 2013