Pension contact, is it legit

mattswife

Many years ago I worked for a company and had an equitable life pension. About 20 years ago I cashed in the pension as I needed a new car and had started a job as a teacher which had its own pension scheme. 

At the time of having the old pension I had a different surname and lived at a different address. 

Last week, I got a letter from Utmost who I believe have taken over from equitable life. It has my old surname on but came to my new address. I have never had that surname at this address. 

They say they have been looking for me and want my dob, NI number and address, full name, phone number and signature. 

Is this likely to actually be the pension company wanting this info, I haven't searched for them as I thought I had taken everything out of it. 

I'm a naturally suspicious person and handing all that info over, I'm concerned about identity theft. 

The return address is UTMOST LIFE AND PENSIONS Walton St Aylesbury hp21 7qw

With a business reply number on the envelope of RTGX-RUGG-RCXA

Any advice gratefully received. 

Hugs and loves needed or not

MW x

Marcon

mattswife said:

Many years ago I worked for a company and had an equitable life pension. About 20 years ago I cashed in the pension as I needed a new car and had started a job as a teacher which had its own pension scheme. 

At the time of having the old pension I had a different surname and lived at a different address. 

Last week, I got a letter from Utmost who I believe have taken over from equitable life. It has my old surname on but came to my new address. I have never had that surname at this address. 

They say they have been looking for me and want my dob, NI number and address, full name, phone number and signature. 

Is this likely to actually be the pension company wanting this info, I haven't searched for them as I thought I had taken everything out of it. 

I'm a naturally suspicious person and handing all that info over, I'm concerned about identity theft. 

The return address is UTMOST LIFE AND PENSIONS Walton St Aylesbury hp21 7qw

With a business reply number on the envelope of RTGX-RUGG-RCXA

Any advice gratefully received. 

Hugs and loves needed or not

MW x

Plaudits to you for checking! If only more people did...

If by 'cashed in' you mean you took the lot as cash, then there's no further pension to find - but unless it was very small, taking the whole lot in cash 20 years ago wasn't normally possible (and you'd need to have been at least 50 years of age at the time). Could you clarify please? 

The address you've given is that of Utmost. It's possible they have run a trace on you using your NI number (amongst other things) and that is why they quite legitimately have your current address and surname.

QrizB

Utmost exist and that is their address.

https://www.utmost.co.uk/

xylophone

Is this likely to actually be the pension company wanting this info, I haven't searched for them as I thought I had taken everything out of it. 

Quite possible.

See

https://www.utmost.co.uk/about-us/history-and-facts/information-about-equitable-life-scheme-and-transfer/

I am wondering whether this is one of those cases where a Guaranteed Minimum Pension was left within the original scheme when the balance was cashed in.

There have been two or three posts over a number of years where this has been the case.

Were you a member of the original scheme pre 1997?

dunstonh

Utmost took on the legacy book of Equitable once the guarantee issues were all sorted out and after the non-guaranteed side was sold elsewhere.

You couldn't cash in a pension until 2016 unless it was a trivial pension.

Albermarle

dunstonh said:

Utmost took on the legacy book of Equitable once the guarantee issues were all sorted out and after the non-guaranteed side was sold elsewhere.

You couldn't cash in a pension until 2016 unless it was a trivial pension.

Is it the case that pension providers are obliged to try and contact/trace clients they have had no contact with for years? Or do some do it as the 'right thing to do '?

mattswife

sorry heads mashed with teacher pension stuff. ill give the whole situation with possible dates and see if that answers any of the questions.

i started working for the company with pension in question around 1995/6 and left around 2000. in that time i didnt pay into the pension, it was just employer contributions.

i was married to someone else then.

in 2003/4 i was getting divorced and needed money for a new car as he took the good car and i needed a more reliable one. I was still living at the old address with my then married name.

i dont remember why i thought to cash it in, there must have been a statement through, i was no longer working for them. Anyway, i cashed it it, i remember having to visit the company to sign the paperwork. I had assumed that taking the money out (about £3k) would have closed the pension and that was that.

I remarried in 2006 and changed my surname, then moved to my current house 12 years ago. 

so the letter seems to be legit if thats their address and they are in fact who they say they are, but am i just a name on a list with no actual money attached to it or is there another part of a pension? 

im 47 so not approaching retirement 

hope theres enough info to cover the questions asked. Thank you so much for any and all help, its very much appreciated.

xylophone

Is it the case that pension providers are obliged to try and contact/trace clients they have had no contact with for years? Or do some do it as the 'right thing to do '?

From previous posts, it seems that every so often,  administrators undertake some sort of auditing process which throws up details of unclaimed funds.

There is then an attempt to reunite owners with their money.

xylophone

around 1995/6 and left around 2000.

Pre 1997 so if a contracted out scheme, there is just a possibility that there was GMP left behind.

Otherwise, there is a possibility that while the pension was paid out, no record was kept so it still shows unpaid on the books?

You won't find out unless you respond to Utmost's contact.

Why not telephone ( there are contact numbers on their web page) to attempt to clarify the position?

And for future planning, have you obtained a state pension forecast?

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

dunstonh

Albermarle said:

dunstonh said:

Utmost took on the legacy book of Equitable once the guarantee issues were all sorted out and after the non-guaranteed side was sold elsewhere.

You couldn't cash in a pension until 2016 unless it was a trivial pension.

Is it the case that pension providers are obliged to try and contact/trace clients they have had no contact with for years? Or do some do it as the 'right thing to do '?

They are required to trace people.  Typically, they accelerate efforts closer to the scheme age or state pension age.  And then go into overdrive when getting closer to 75.     They spend a fortune on professional tracing but tend to start on the lower cost methods earlier before eventually using the higher cost methods.

i dont remember why i thought to cash it in, there must have been a statement through, i was no longer working for them. Anyway, i cashed it it, i remember having to visit the company to sign the paperwork. I had assumed that taking the money out (about £3k) would have closed the pension and that was that.

You couldn't cash in a pension at that time unless it was under triviality or the small pots rule.  Triviality would not apply, and £3k would be too high for small pots (it had a £2k limit), and you didn't need to travel to Aylesbury (Eq's life office) to do so.   You had to be age 60 or older as well.

However, you couldn't use small pots for a protected rights fund.  Only ordinary rights (non-protected rights as it's called today) could use small pots.

So, there are some anomalies in what you are saying but also a possible reason why they are contacting you.
a) was it actually a pension you cashed in and not a savings endowment? (Eq Life had those and sales agents back in the 80s to early 90s would sometimes set these up instead of pensions but refer to them as a pension - many times, I have had someone ask me to look at their pension only for me to find out it is an endowment)
b) if it was a pension, does it pay you any income?  (thinking you may have taken the 25% with the rest used for annuity payment)
c) If you had protected rights or funds built up under the contested guarantees then these could well be what they are trying to contact you about.

mattswife

xylophone said:

around 1995/6 and left around 2000.

Pre 1997 so if a contracted out scheme, there is just a possibility that there was GMP left behind.

Otherwise, there is a possibility that while the pension was paid out, no record was kept so it still shows unpaid on the books?

You won't find out unless you respond to Utmost's contact.

Why not telephone ( there are contact numbers on their web page) to attempt to clarify the position?

And for future planning, have you obtained a state pension forecast?

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

yeah i checked my pension, i have been collecting NI contributions since i think 1995 but 2000/2001 i think i dont have any because i left work to go to uni full time for 18 months, but it wasnt classed as a full time degree, it was a top up from a HNC. i only need 4 more years of contributions for my full pension. OH on the other hand is a veeeery different story.