FAQs

We are working with the FCA to review annuities purchased between 1 July 2008 and 31 May 2016 through Standard Life on a non-advised basis, where customers did not use a financial adviser. Visit our questions and answers page to find out more. We have also established a team to help customers who have specific questions. You can call this team on 0345 266 1208.

Call charges will vary.

The government wants people to save for their retirement but realises that people might not want to commit to saving in a pension that can't be touched for some years. To encourage people to save, the government gives tax breaks on pension contributions.

Tax breaks mean that for every £100 you save into your pension, it only costs you £80, or even less. For higher rate taxpayers this could be as little as £60, or £55 for additional rate taxpayers. Tax relief on the payments that you personally make to pensions is limited to 100% of your earnings (or £3,600 if this is more). The way in which the tax breaks are given depends on the type of pension scheme you're in and also whether or not you use salary exchange (also known as salary sacrifice). More information on pensions and tax breaks can be found on the Pensions Advisory Service website.

Tax rules can always change and what it means for you will depend on your individual circumstances. The information provided here is based on tax bands in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Different tax bands apply in Scotland.

Relying on your property to fund your retirement income could be risky.

For a start, to release any cash you would need to move home and downsize. This could involve a lot of cost, such as paying stamp duty. Another alternative is equity release, which could prove an expensive way to raise the funds you need.

And having all your investments in one asset, is risky. If your money is tied up in a house, you are at the mercy of the property market when you need to sell. Look into investing in a Pension. As with any investment the value of your pension can go down as well as up and may be worth less than what you paid in.

We normally send you a note at the end of the tax year about how much income you've received. If you can't find this or haven't received it then contact us and we can give you the information you need.

For the 2020/2021 tax year, you can invest up to £20,000 in a Stocks & Shares ISA.

No, ISAs do not have to be included in your tax return to HMRC (HM Revenue & Customs). Tax rules may change in the future.

No. There is no fixed time limit for the Stocks and Shares ISA. You should view your Stocks and Shares ISA as a medium to long-term investment, which means it should usually be held for at least five years. You are able to withdraw money at any time. However, occasionally some funds may place restrictions on withdrawals which may cause a delay in you receiving your money.

For quick online registration, click on the ‘register’ button found in the top right hand corner on every page of our website.  

We’ll ask you to confirm some plan details and verify your email address. This will allow you to set your own username and password.

We’ll also ask you to set some additional security. You will be asked to set up 3 security questions and you can choose to set a recovery mobile number. Your account will then be set up and you can login straight away.

Or just call us on 0345 606 0098 - Monday to Friday between 09:00 and 17:00. You will need to have your plan number, which you can find in your annual statement or in most letters we’ve sent you. We’ll do our security checks over the phone and send you the verification email to set up your login details.

Calls may be monitored and / or recorded to protect both you and us and help with our training. Call charges will vary.

We strongly encourage you to set up a recovery mobile number on your online accounts as this can be used to help retrieve/reset forgotten login details quickly and securely. Our additional security will allow you to get back online quickly, easily and securely in the future if you ever forget your login details.

If you need to reset your details and have set up a recovery mobile number we will send you an SMS with a 6 digit code by default. If not, we will ask you to answer one of your pre-set security questions.

You should keep this information up to date and if you ever need to make any changes you can visit the ‘Security Settings’ tab within the ‘My Details’ section of our secure online servicing.

You will never be asked your personal security questions over the phone.

To login, click on the ‘login’ button that you will find in the top right-hand corner on every page of our website. We’ll ask you to enter your username and full password.

Remember to keep your login information private and secure.

• We’ll never send out emails to customers asking for security details or other confidential information from you
• During our online registration, and in cases of forgotten login details, we'll send you a verification link to your registered email address
• To verify your email address click the link we sent you in the verification email, or copy it into your browser window. This will open up a new, secure internet session. You can tell an internet session is secure if there's a padlock icon or https// in your browser address bar. We'll never ask you for personal information after you start this session, but we may ask you to re-enter your plan number

If you receive an email that looks as if it has been sent from Standard Life but you're unsure if it is from us, please do not respond or visit any site which the email may link to. Instead, you can send it to our mailbox and we'll look in to it for you.

Email security

While email is useful, it can also have risks. Phishing is a fraudulent practice of sending emails pretending to be from organisations you already know such as your bank or payment card company, insurance company, a government department or a business. These emails will look ‘real’. But they are designed to obtain your personal information or to infect your device with a virus.

If something's too good to be true, it probably is. Not everything you read in an email is true or trustworthy.

Recognising a phishing email

You can learn to spot common things that give scam emails away, such as:

• The use of 'Dear Customer' or 'Dear Friend' instead of using your actual name
• Spelling mistakes
• Poor word spacing
• Use of symbols like apostrophes and semicolons that look out of place
• Using HTML (web page code) to insert remarks that break up key words
• Using an image of text rather than text itself. You can tell by trying to highlight the words
• Containing very little text at all in the actual email, just a hyperlink to a website

Genuine companies, financial services providers and government bodies make a big effort to keep their emails accurate and professional looking. Any of the mistakes above are clues that the email is from a nuisance or fraudulent source.

How to protect yourself

• Never reply to emails asking you for personal or financial information about yourself. Genuine banks and financial companies will not ask you for personal or financial information this way 
• Never reply to emails that you weren't expecting, or if you don't know the sender
• Never open attachments you weren't expecting
• Don't click on links within emails – they could take you to fraudulent websites. Type the address into your browser instead
• Even emails that appear to be from friends, family and colleagues may, in reality, be fraudulent, sent by a virus on their device
• If you are sending an email to several people, type their names in the 'BCC' field instead of the 'CC' field (in case it gets intercepted and reveals everyone's names and email addresses)
• Before forwarding an email, remember to delete all details – like the original sender or the previous email trail – if you don't want them to be seen

• For best practice, never click on links in emails. Instead type the address in yourself
• Check the site address is correctly shown in the address bar before you provide any confidential or financial details
• Never leave your computer or other device unattended when you are not alone
• Remember to log out properly when you have finished, even if you are closing your browser or switching off your device

Choose a safe environment

• Avoid crowded public places, where people may try to look at what you are doing, nicknamed 'shoulder surfers’
• Avoid using public or unsecured Wi-Fi networks. Use your mobile phone’s 4G network instead

Keep your computer secure

• Protect your computer, tablet and phone with passwords or biometrics (such as fingerprint or face recognition)
• Always install the latest updates for your system, applications and internet security software. You must keep your operating system and web browser up to date at all times

Choose strong passwords and keep them to yourself

• A strong password should be easy for you to remember and impossible for anyone else to work out. We recommend they are at least 14 characters long and use letters, numbers and symbols
• Try something called a ‘passphrase’ – a short memorable sentence (e.g. 1loveStandardLife!)
• Don't use family or pets names, birthdays, place names or football teams, as these can be easy for others to guess
• Never use the same password (or passphrase) for different accounts
• We would strongly encourage you to set up a recovery mobile number on your online accounts. At Standard Life, we will use this to help you retrieve/reset forgotten login details quickly and securely

For more detailed information, visit the National Cyber Security Centre's website and have a look at their top tips for staying secure online.

If you think you have been defrauded, or that someone is trying to defraud you, contact the police. There are other actions you can take, depending on what country you live in.

If you live in the UK

The services in this list can help if you have, or think you have been a victim of fraud:

• www.cifas.org.uk - If you have been the victim of fraud, then contact CIFAS to register and protect your identity from further attack.

• Use Equifax / Experian / Call Credit to check your credit history

• Register with a Fraud Prevention Agency that also offers a Protective Registration Service. Call 0870 010 2091.

• www.royalmail.com - If you think your post is being stolen, contact the Royal Mail on their Customer Enquiry number, 08457 740 740.

If you live outside the UK

Please check what services are available in your area, either from your government or consumer advice bodies. You can also search online for topics like "fraud prevention" or "report fraud".

Report suspicious emails to Standard Life

If you have received any emails supposedly from Standard Life but are suspicious, please forward the message to emailscams@standardlife.com.

If it is a single life plan you can do this over the phone, please call us on 0800 634 7472. Call charges will vary. If it is a joint life plan we would need to speak to both planholders on the same day or receive a letter signed by both parties. We may still need to request documentation from you and we'll let you know if this is required.

We'll write to you about 5-6 weeks before your plan matures to confirm what is going to happen. We'll pay the maturity value into the same account you make your payments from about 3 to 5 working days after the maturity date.

A lot depends on the type of plan that the deceased held. If you have any questions relating to a claim please call us on 0800 634 7471. Call charges will vary.

Yes, you can get financial advice from Standard Life. To find out more visit our financial planning page or contact us. Fees may apply.

We’re UK based. You can find the telephone numbers on our contact us page.

Our people offer their time and skills through volunteering and charity secondments. Our strategic focus is employability - working with our people and other key stakeholders to deliver sustainable employment and build a future we can all look forward to.

We also support communities by donating time, facilities and other items, like computers and furniture, to schools, charities and other community groups.

Engaging our people with our sustainability activities creates a positive working environment and develops their skills and networks.