Yes. To make sure we’re prepared to respond to the evolving situation we have robust measures in place. This includes making sure that we have contingency plans to ensure the safety of the staff who look after the Plan and to continue the payment of pensions.

At present there is no risk to the continued payment of your pension. We will continue to keep a close eye on developments and if the situation or advice changes, then we will issue further communications.

If you are approaching or thinking about retiring, you should follow the usual process. You will have been contacted by the administration team if you are nearing your intended retirement age so you can complete and return the forms they have provided.

This will be something you need to think about in light of your current financial situation. There is currently no risk to payment of pensions so your retirement can proceed as planned.

If you are worried about your income, you might want to take some financial advice on your options at this time. You can find a financial adviser at https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/finding-adviser

Yes, we still currently have operational post teams so all certificates will be returned in the usual timescales.

If you wish to transfer your pension you can do so if Plan rules allow and you can find a plan willing to accept your transfer. You are likely to be required to take independent financial advice before transferring your defined benefit pension to another arrangement (although you will not need to if the transfer is less than £30,000).

Please be aware that scammers may be seeking a way to try and convince people to hand over their pension savings. For further information see the above ‘pension scams’ section.

The admin team will deal with any cases as usual. We are currently working to our usual timescales; we will update here should this change.

You may have seen recently in the news the falls in the global investment markets due, in part, to the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). You may have also noticed changes in the value of your pension in the Plan due to movement in the underlying investments.

It is likely that the markets will remain unpredictable for the short to medium term. This unpredictability may well continue to be reflected in the value of your pension fund.

You should remember that your pension is an investment and will be subject to changes in the markets. How much this affects you will depend on your age, which funds your pension is invested in and what other pension savings you may have.

If you are not yet approaching retirement, then your pension is a long-term investment and the markets may have recovered before you need to use it. If you are nearer retirement, you may wish to consider the risk level of your investments, and if it is still appropriate for your retirement plans. It is recommended that you consider taking financial advice.

You can switch your funds by emailing the Administration team using the contact details here.

This will depend very much on the individual investments you have. Some funds will have fallen more than others while some may have increased depending on the underlying investment. The funds you have invested in and the spread of these investments will mean that you may see a smaller or a larger drop in your pension fund.

Equities and other investments are likely to remain very unpredictable throughout the continued potential spread.

It is not possible to predict. Over the shorter to medium term investments are likely to continue to be unpredictable. If you are some way from retirement this may help you in the longer term as your current investments will be buying units of shares that are priced lower than normal at the moment, so you get more for your money. They also have time to recover and grow before your retirement date.

Yes, this is available by Administration team using the contact details here.

Your funds are invested in line with your own choices within the options available. Further information will have been issued in recent benefit statements and may be obtained by contacting the Administration team using the contact details here.

We are sorry for your loss. As soon as you are ready, you should notify the admin team, this will allow us to get most of the information we need from you right away. This information includes:

• Full name of deceased
• Your name, relationship to the deceased and contact details
• Date of death
• Information about the next of kin/ dependants or person dealing with their affairs

We will need you to send us the death certificate and potentially other certificates as well. After we have received the death certificate, we will need to identify the beneficiaries. We will advise you if we require any further documents to do this. Our aim is to process these claims as soon as possible, but some cases might be complex and could take longer.

Yes, we have taken steps to protect the staff working to administer your pension so they may be working from home, but we are still in operation. We have very detailed plans to continue to deal with the administration and payment of pensions as well as protecting our staff during this time.

Yes. We have very robust two-factor authorisation protocols on all our computers and laptops.

We are also paperless so staff at home will have no physical data. It is all stored on secure electronic equipment.

Yes, we have taken steps to protect the staff working to administer your pension so some of them may be working from home, but we are still in operation and answering calls during the usual opening hours. We have very detailed plans to continue to deal with the administration and payment of pensions as well as protecting our staff during this time.

You can find information about the coronavirus and your pension by emailing or calling the admin team using the contact details provided here. Any new information regarding your pension and coronavirus will be posted on this InfoHub page.

The Pensions Advisory Service has produced a note about Coronavirus and pensions which is available at https://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/