DB & Derisking

The Royal Mail Pension Plan has defended postal communication as the best way to reach members, while more schemes, including the Shropshire Pension Fund, opt for paperless correspondence to reduce costs.

Video: Richard Greening, chair of Islington Council's pensions sub-committee, explained why the £800m fund made its residential property allocation despite some member concerns, in this first edition of Policymakers and Decision-makers (5:30).

British Airways has defended its trustee selection policy following a vote showing nine out of 10 members of its older Airways Pension Scheme were concerned about potential conflicts of interest

Video: Cookson Group Pension Plan manager John Reeve, and LCP principal Emma Watkins, discuss how schemes can construct pensioner buy-ins that are fair and good value for their entire membership, in this first PW Review (5:58).

The £1.6bn Superannuation Arrangements of the University of London has decided to suspend members from transferring in their old private sector pensions to manage the risk and cost of regulatory changes, including auto-enrolment.

Analysis: A tough market this year made it difficult for schemes to derisk, but the MNOPF is the latest in a series of funds that managed to insure members' benefits during 2012.

A multi-pronged communication strategy helped the Merchant Navy Officers’ Pension Fund secure a £680m buy-in to insure the remaining liabilities of one of its legacy schemes.

UK Coal has given itself 10 to 12 years to erase its £450m pension deficit, its finance director said, following a major restructure that saw its pension schemes take a three-quarter stake in its property division.

One of the UK’s largest industry-wide schemes will offer employers a career average benefit for auto-enrolment, which it says embodies defined ambition by giving certainty in retirement and cost-effective administration.

Data analysis: Schemes face tough choices over whether to reset their LDI derisking triggers, which are out of step with market pricing, leaving them short of their desired level of hedging.