Standard Life SIPP ready for protected rights

Standard Life has announced it will be ready for business from the 18th August to allow people to transfer and invest their existing protected rights pension pots into the SIPP, following a change in Government legislation.

This development is the first initiative in a major programme of developments planned for the SIPP over the coming months.

The benefits for clients to add protected rights into SIPP include:

Introduces additional choice and flexibility when clients need to take retirement income

Allows people to invest their protected rights money where they wish rather than being confined to a very limited range of investment options

May reduce charges especially where protected rights are currently held in older contracts, or where the addition of protected rights gives a larger fund discount

Easier to keep track and monitor fund performance

Advisers can streamline processes and reduce the paper chase for these pots of pension money if clients consolidate. Advisers now have the opportunity to add value and plan with certainty around client reviews knowing that the Standard Life individual, group and Wrap SIPP will be open to protected rights transfer business.

Andrew Tully, Senior Pensions Technical Manager for Standard life commented: "We estimate there is between £75 billion and £100 billion of protected rights funds currently held in defined contribution pension schemes which people might want to consolidate into their SIPP."

Tully concluded: "This is often money which people have forgotten about and therefore is a great opportunity to make this money work as hard as possible for retirement while making investment decisions easier. People can monitor progress of their retirement plans using their SIPP alone and will make life easier by reducing paperwork while maximising the investment potential across their portfolios."

Commenting on the wider programme of SIPP development, Dave Campbell, Director of Retirement Solutions at Standard Life said: "Our SIPP has set the standard for others to follow since launch in 2004, but we can't rest on our laurels. The SIPP market is not a place for the faint-hearted and any company who wishes to be taken seriously needs to innovate to stay ahead. We're confident the developments and support we'll introduce throughout the rest of 2008 will cement our place at the head of this market and make us the natural choice for advisers and customers."

For more information, visit standardlife.com