Frequently Asked Questions
- Who are the members of the Board of Trustees and who represents the interests of the pensioners?
- How did these surplus funds arise and are there likely to be any future surpluses?
- How come some pensioners have ended up with considerably higher pensions than colleagues with identical length of service and final salary? How can this be fair?
- How do I contact the Royal Ordnance Pension Scheme to enquire about my pension?
- How do I make a complaint about an issue to do with my pension?
- Our current pensions are secure, aren't they?
- Even though our pension fund is now closed, surely we needn't worry about our pensions provided the fund meets the Minimum Funding Requirement?
- Why has our pension scheme been closed?
1. Who are the members of the Board of Trustees and who represents the interests of the pensioners?
The members of the Board are as follows:
Malcolm Green (Chairman)
Jon Grant (Company appointee)
Keith Hainsworth (Company appointee)
Brian Halliwell (Company appointee)
Mark Kane (Company appointee)
Paul Clarke (Amicus - Glascoed)
Neil Driver (Amicus - Bridgwater)
Murray Fullerton
Derek Plunkett (Prospect - Glascoed)
Colin Mackenzie (Bishopton, Prospect)
Brian Johnson (Pensioners' Trustee - ROPA)
and Phil Reeve is the Scheme Secretary and Pensions Manager
2. How did these surplus funds arise and are there likely to be any future surpluses?
Every three years the fund has to be subjected to scrutiny by the actuaries and if the fund is found to be excess of 105% of the IR valuation the Inland Revenue requires that the assets are reduced. In 1989, 1992, 1995 and 1998 the fund was found to be in surplus, totaling £215M and on very nearly every occasion the Trustees have ignored the clear majority of pension fund members, i e the pensioners, in allocating these sums. Following the 2004 Pensions Act which introduced "Scheme Specific Funding", a considerable improvement over the old Minimum Funding requirement, it is less likely that surpluses will occur in the future. (See also Q7 )
3. How come some pensioners have ended up with considerably higher pensions than colleagues with identical length of service and final salary? How can this be fair?
Members aged between 50-60 who were made redundant faced little or no prospect of securing future employment and so most opted to accept terms under the Special Early Retirement Pension (SERP) scheme which enabled them to draw their pension immediately but one which was abated by 4% for each year below the age of 60. For those in their early fifties this amounted to a considerably reduced pension for the rest of their life. Subsequent voluntary early retirement schemes dropped this 4% per year abatement and thus those leaving the company later received a much higher pension than those early leavers who were unfortunate in having no choice in the timing of their retirement.
Is this fair? The company say "life is never fair" and we can change the rules to suit ourselves, so there!
4. How do I contact the Royal Ordnance Pension Scheme to enquire about my pension?
You can send an e-mail by clicking here or by phone:
Tel: 0845 601 4762
Fax: 01772 677 151
Or write to :
The Royal Ordnance Pension Scheme
BAE Systems Pensions Administration
Freepost NATW 307
Fulwood Park - Building 2
Caxton Road
Fulwood
Preston
PR2 9BR
5. How do I make a complaint about an issue to do with my pension?
If you are unsatisfied with any response from the Pensions Manager ( see 5 above ) you can lodge an official complaint with the Trustees using the form which you can download by clicking here (Word97 format, 42.5 kb). This has to be submitted to the Secretary of the Board of Trustees, N P Tinsley, in writing. Receipt of your complaint should be acknowledged within 14 days and then considered by two members of the Discretionary Committee, one of whom must be a Member Nominated Trustee. You should receive a response to your formal complaint within 2 months.
If you are still unsatisfied with this you can ask for the issue to be reconsidered by the Discretionary Committee provided you do so within 6 months. You should also ask the Pensions Advisory Service, OPAS, to assist with your case if you reach this stage. The Discretionary Committee have another 2 months to reconsider their position. If the issue is not then resolved to your satisfaction OPAS may then advise taking the matter to the Pensions Ombudsman for adjudication.
If you do undertake any of the above formal complaint procedure please remember to keep ROPA informed at all stages. We may be able to assist .
6. Our current pensions are secure, aren't they?
Probably, but they cannot ever be fully guaranteed. They are dependent on the strength of the covenant with the sponsoring company. Cases such as United Engineering Forgings and Allied Steel & Wire demonstrated that occupational pension funds are very vulnerable when a company goes into liquidation and the pension fund has to be wound up. Before the 2004 Pensions Act came into force even companies which were solvent were able to wind up their pension schemes quite legally with insufficient funds to cover all the liabilities and as a result active members of such schemes had their expected pensions drastically reduced. In 2003 it became a requirement that solvent companies winding up their pension schemes would have to make up the pension funds to meet all their liabilities in full. Also the 2004 Pensions Act established the Pension Protection Fund to compensate workers whose pension funds are wound up due to company insolvency. However under this scheme pensions in payment would not be index linked and also the government has reserved the right to reduce the payments if the PPF runs into difficulties.
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