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Working practices
In line with most other organisations, during the COVID-19 outbreak the Trustees have been carrying out its business and meetings via video conferences and emails, rather than face-to-face meetings. The Trustee Services Team, which supports the Trustees, is also facing travel restrictions and has been working from home. Whilst this has not been ideal, we remain confident at this time that the Trustees will continue to manage the Schemes in a "business as usual" way, with the normal expected level of support from the Trustee Services Team.
Scheme funding
As communicated in previous newsletters, the Schemes have considerably reduced the risk of significant volatility in its investments over the years. They now only hold about 10-15% of the Scheme’s investments in assets like equities, which aim to produce higher returns but may also demonstrate greater volatility. The Trustees have also previously taken significant action to minimise the impact of changes in interest rates, inflation and currency exchange rates.
So, whilst the Schemes are not immune to the market falls, the actual impact on the funding position to date has not been anywhere near as dramatic as the market falls that you may have seen reported in the press. The Trustees are keeping this position under constant review and are working closely with RSA in relation to the impact of the virus on the Schemes and to understand the impact on RSA’s business in the UK and across the world. RSA continues to keep the Trustees fully informed of the business impact as this develops.
Administration
In terms of the Scheme’s administration, as you would expect from a large global company, Willis Towers Watson, has strong business continuity and incident management plans in place, which have been activated. The Trustee’s priorities have been advised to Willis Towers Watson, which include:
- Ensuring that pensions are paid.
- Ensuring that key administration processes continue to be dealt with, such as notification of bereavements and settling retirement benefits.
Willis Towers Watson has plans in place to maintain critical services, such as those above, and the Trustees are able to make sure sufficient cash and liquidity exists to continue payments. However, this remains a very difficult time for Willis Towers Watson staff and therefore it is very likely that other, less critical, administration tasks, will take longer than would usually be expected.
The Trustees, with the support of the Trustee Services Team, is working closely with Willis Towers Watson to manage proactively the delivery of member service. The requirement for our administration team to work from home during the pandemic has reduced overall capacity and productivity levels. We have developed and are implementing a staged management plan, with actions triggered should work levels rise and/or available resources reduce. You can help us manage the situation by using ePA for queries and statements, if you have access, and we would ask you to be understanding if you need to contact Willis Towers Watson or to delay asking for information if possible.
The Trustees appreciate that this is a highly uncertain and unprecedented time and we hope you and your family remain safe and healthy. We thank you in advance for your understanding if things are delayed and we will continue to work closely with all parties to manage the situation and minimise any disruption to the services that you currently receive.
