RANK MONEY PURCHASE PENSION SCHEME

johnjohn7899

Hi,
Spent around 4 months and many, many hours trying to trace above pension, been to Pension Tracing Service, HMRC, .Gov, about 15 companies.
My wife left the pension in 1997 but have all paperwork/statements etc. including letter advising Abbey National will be responsible for 'some aspects' of the pension as being transferred to them in 1999. Abbey/Santander/Royal London simply advise they have no record but I've insisted they advise that they agree they once held this pension and to whom it was transferred - they don't acknowledge. Been exchanging emails with Rank HR for months and no news at all.
Any idea who I contact if no-one confirms responsibility for this pension? The Company Strand Lighting closed a while back.
Any assistance appreciated as at wits end.
Thanks, John

xylophone

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strand_Lighting

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/03264752

Abbey National will be responsible for 'some aspects' of the pension

This sounds a bit odd.

Ae you sure  that this was not Abbey Life?

Have you tried Phoenix?

Or if she was actually a member of the DB Scheme, have you tried Rothesay Life?

 

Marcon

johnjohn7899 said:

Hi,
Spent around 4 months and many, many hours trying to trace above pension, been to Pension Tracing Service, HMRC, .Gov, about 15 companies.
My wife left the pension in 1997 but have all paperwork/statements etc. including letter advising Abbey National will be responsible for 'some aspects' of the pension as being transferred to them in 1999. Abbey/Santander/Royal London simply advise they have no record but I've insisted they advise that they agree they once held this pension and to whom it was transferred - they don't acknowledge. Been exchanging emails with Rank HR for months and no news at all.
Any idea who I contact if no-one confirms responsibility for this pension? The Company Strand Lighting closed a while back.
Any assistance appreciated as at wits end.
Thanks, John

Could you post some extracts please (redacting any of your wife's personal info such as name, DOB, NI number etc), especially the letter about Abbey National being responsible for 'some aspects'? That sounds a bit odd and it would be helpful to see what was actually said.

johnjohn7899

Hi, definitely Abbey National, have tried Rothesay,Phoenix, Royal London, MandG, L&G, Compass, Scottish Widows and more  - this is a DC scheme. Something weird with this as company set up called Rank Money Purchase Pension Trustees closed in 2013 with Rank employees on this. I'm in conversation with Rank but after a month they suggested I contact Scottish Widows... I've asked them for documented evidence of to whom my wife's pension was transferred through the years as the 'trustees' stated they would oversee once pension was with Abbey. 

Thanks for any advice.

extract of letter below:

To all members of the Rank Pension Plan ("the Plan") and the Rank Money Purchase Pension Scheme ("the Scheme").

Why we are writing to you

The administration of the Plan and the Scheme was previously undertaken by Rank Leisure Holdings Plc ("Rank") on behalf of the Trustee Board of the Plan and the Scheme.

The Trustee Boards are pleased to announce that Abbey National Pensions Administration Services ("ANPAS") have taken over responsibility for the administration of certain aspects of the Plan and the Scheme with effect from Monday 5 July 1999.

What will change

In future, if you have an enquiry about the Plan or Scheme or regarding your individual entitlement, you should write to:

Abbey National Pensions Administration Services

Rank Group Pensions Department

77 Gracechurch Street

LONDON

EC3V OHL

Telephone: 0870 607 0830

                        Fax:             0171 548 1468

ANPAS operate a section dedicated to the administration of the Plan and the Scheme. The section is staffed by 6 of the current Rank pensions administration staff who accepted the offer of employment with ANPAS.

Marcon

johnjohn7899 said:

Hi,
Spent around 4 months and many, many hours trying to trace above pension, been to Pension Tracing Service, HMRC, .Gov, about 15 companies.
My wife left the pension in 1997 but have all paperwork/statements etc. including letter advising Abbey National will be responsible for 'some aspects' of the pension as being transferred to them in 1999. Abbey/Santander/Royal London simply advise they have no record but I've insisted they advise that they agree they once held this pension and to whom it was transferred - they don't acknowledge. Been exchanging emails with Rank HR for months and no news at all.
Any idea who I contact if no-one confirms responsibility for this pension? The Company Strand Lighting closed a while back.
Any assistance appreciated as at wits end.
Thanks, John

If your wife was employed by Strand Lighting, is it possible that she was in the Strand Lighting Money Purchase Pension Scheme? Looking at the tracing service info, that has been liquidated but the most recent contact details ('most recent' still looks as if it means 'old'!) are:

Post Handling Centre G

St James House

7 Charlotte Street

Manchester

United Kingdom

M1 4DZ

Telephone

0141 240 2861

You might also see if Gretel.co.uk (free to use) yields anything useful.

Also worth seeking help from https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/pension-problems on where to go next if the above doesn't help.

xylophone

Did she receive annual statements after she left the scheme?

If so, when did they stop?

sandsy

Are you sure it was the Rank pension scheme and a DC pension?

There's a pension scheme called Strand Lighting Pension Plan listed on the Pension Protection Find website:

https://www.ppf.co.uk/Schemes?searchViewType=2&page=83

Might be worth a phone call to the PPF.

xylophone

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/john-maclean-6733661_strand-lighting-pensions-anyone-who-worked-activity-6567040946222043136-DZUj?trk=public_profile_like_view

johnjohn7899

Hi all, very much appreciate your help, yes tried PPF they only have DB schemes, reached out to John Maclean last week , no reply, contacted an ex colleague of my wife who says his pension is now with M&G, but they had no record. My wife moved in with me in 1999 and her parents moved house so no more communication.As it happens tried Gretel yesterday but it never asked for maiden name so bit confusing. As per the letter I posted it is/was Rank Money Purchase Pension Plan.  I have addresses of directors/secretary of this defunct company called Rank Money Purchase Pension Trustees Ltd - guess it would be inappropriate to knock at their doors? But at wits end with this.

A 'Money Purchase' scheme is DC not DB, I learnt this on my investigations....

Surely a company like Rank will have audit trail, even when first transferred find this is hard to get my head round. 

Royal London (act on behalf of Abbey) tried to fob me off but I've insisted they provide documented evidence they once had this pension and to whom it was transferred. They have sent my enquiry to another department...

My feeling is it either changed names and was liquidated or as no reply to any letters sent out my wife's pension has been sitting somewhere and hopefully invested but no closer to finding out.

We all seem to be following the same lines of investigation but if anything new crops up please let me know. I'll buy you a pint or two if you help me resolve this !  

Marcon

Have you tried MoneyHelper (link in my post above)?

Also try this (which could help, but only if the scheme was 'contracted out'): https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/shortforms/form/DPU_SAR_NI?_ga=2.230026460.1544670040.1621021753-1315656139.1609178084

There's no guarantee either will help but must be worth a go!

Marcon

johnjohn7899 said:

I have addresses of directors/secretary of this defunct company called Rank Money Purchase Pension Trustees Ltd - guess it would be inappropriate to knock at their doors? But at wits end with this.

Nothing to stop you sending a polite letter.