What you can do
Update your personal details
If you move house, get married or divorced, or have children it’s important that you let us know.
Updating your details is straightforward and will help us to make sure that:
- You receive important messages about your retirement savings
- Your pension payments are processed quickly and made on time
- When you die any money owed goes to the people you want to receive it.
To make a change, please contact the Scheme Administrator.
Transfer out
You can move your benefits from JOG&T to another registered pension scheme. Defined Benefit (DB) retirement benefits can be very valuable. Moving your benefits is a significant decision which must be considered carefully.
If your benefits are worth more than £30,000 you are required, by law, to take independent financial advice.
You can find an Independent Financial Adviser at MoneyHelper.
People with DB pension benefits are targeted by scammers who may encourage you to transfer your funds out of the Scheme so that they can take your money. Find out more about how to spot a scam and where to go for further information and help.
If you wish to transfer your benefits from JOG&T you can request a transfer value from the Scheme Administrator each year. You can transfer your benefits from JOG&T to:
- a new employer’s scheme;
- a personal or stakeholder pension; or
- you can take out a ‘buy-out’ policy with an insurance company.
To request a transfer value, simply get in touch with the Scheme Administrator.
How much do you need?
Do you know how much money you will need to fund the kind of retirement you want to have? It can be difficult to imagine what your life will be like when you retire. The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association has developed a set of Retirement Living Standards to help you imagine the retirement you want and work out how much it will cost. Find out more in Your retirement lifestyle.
Tax allowances and your retirement savings
You do not pay tax on the money you save into a pension up to certain amounts. Everyone has an Annual Allowance (AA) for tax free pension saving. There are different allowances for people earning over £200,000 a year (Tapered Annual Allowance) and for those who have already started to take their retirement savings (Money Purchase Annual Allowance - MPAA).
Up until 6 April 2023 there was also the Lifetime Allowance (LTA) to consider. The value of your pension benefits was assessed against the Lifetime Allowance, or Personal Lifetime Allowance, at certain points (including retirement), and if the value of your benefits exceeded the allowance, there was a tax charge on the excess. The LTA tax charge has not been enforced since 6 April 2023, and it has been removed completely from April 2024.
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Annual Allowance (AA)
The AA is the maximum amount you can save into your pension each year and still attract tax relief. Your AA applies to the total amount you save including any contributions made for you by Vodafone to LifeSight and any pension savings you make outside LifeSight. There is no limit on the amount you can save into a pension plan, but there is a limit on the amount that receives tax relief each year. The AA for the 2024/25 tax year is £60,000. If the amount saved is more than £60,000 you will pay a tax charge on the amount over the AA. If you are affected by the AA, you may be able to carry forward any unused tax allowances from the previous three years. You can find a helpful AA calculator on the gov.uk website.
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The Lump Sum Allowance (LSA)
The LSA is the total tax-free lump sum limit you can receive from all your pensions, unless you have a valid protection certificate that allows you to take a higher tax-free amount. From April 2024, the LSA limit is £268,275 (that is 25% of £1,073,100 – the old LTA). Any amount in excess of this limit will be taxed at your marginal rate.
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The Lump Sum Death Benefit Allowance (LSDBA)
This is the total tax-free lump sum amount that can be paid to beneficiaries if someone dies before age 75. The LSDBA limit is £1,073,100. Any amount in excess of this limit as taxed at your marginal rate.
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Tapered Annual Allowance (Tapered AA)
The reduced or ‘tapered’ AA is in place for those with taxable earnings over £200,000 a year – known as your threshold income. If your threshold income (including your salary, any bonuses, and income from other sources) is more than £200,000 a year, you need to calculate your tapered AA by working out your adjusted income. This is your total taxable earnings plus your total pension contributions in the tax year. From 6 April 2024, if your adjusted income is more than £260,000, your AA is reduced by £1 for every £2 above the £260,000, to a minimum of £10,000 a year. If you are affected by the tapered AA, you may be able to carry forward any unused tax allowances from the previous three years. If you are a Vodafone employee, you may also be able to take advantage of the capped contribution option, visit MyChoices for more details. You can also find more detailed information on tax and your pension on gov.uk
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Money Purchase Annual Allowance (MPAA)
If you are aged 55 or over and have previously drawn, or are currently drawing, an income from any Defined Contribution (DC) savings your AA will be reduced. The option to take some of your retirement savings whilst continuing to save into a DC scheme was introduced as part of the flexible benefit options in April 2015. You may be subject to a restricted AA of £10,000 a year (From 6 April 2024) if you have taken money from your DC retirement savings. If this impacts you, anything you save above the £10,000 limit will be subject to a tax charge. Find out more on gov.uk.
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The Overseas Transfer Allowance
The Overseas Transfer Allowance is the total value of pensions that you can transfer to a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme (QROPS). The limit is £1,073,100 and if you exceed this limit, the amount will be subject to a 25% tax charge. Find out more on gov.uk.
HMRC’s Annual Allowance and Tapered Annual Allowances
From April 6 2020 to April 6 2023
| Threshold Income/ Adjusted Income |
Annual Allowance |
Tapered Annual Allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Below £200,000 | £40,000 | – |
| Over £240,000 (including pension contributions) and less than £312,000 | – | In a range reducing from £40,000 to £4,000* |
| Over £312,000 | – | £4,000* |
*The £4,000 limit also applies if you are already in receipt of your defined contribution pension. This is known as the Money Purchase Annual Allowance, see above for more details.
After April 6 2023
| Threshold Income/ Adjusted Income |
Annual Allowance |
Tapered Annual Allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Below £200,000 | £60,000 | – |
| Over £260,000 (including pension contributions) and less than £360,000 | – | In a range reducing from £60,000 to £10,000** |
| Over £360,000 | – | £10,000** |
**The £10,000 limit also applies if you are already in receipt of your defined contribution pension. This is known as the Money Purchase Annual Allowance, see above for more details.
More detailed information on tax and your pension is available on gov.uk.
Other tax allowances
If you also have savings in a Defined Contribution scheme, such as LifeSight, and have started to take some or all of your money, whilst continuing to save into a pension arrangement, you may also be subject to the Money Purchase Annual Allowance (MPAA). Find out more on gov.uk.
Ill-health benefits
You may be able to take ill-health retirement. To be eligible you must be unable to do any paid work. Eligibility for ill-health retirement is at the Trustee’s discretion.
Death benefits
If you die whilst still working for Vodafone
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Cash lump sum
A cash lump sum will be available dependant on the Rules in place at the time of your membership.
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Spouse pension
A spouse’s pension will be payable in the event of your death. If you are not survived by a spouse, a dependant’s pension will be payable instead.
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Children’s pension
If you have children under the age of 18 (or 23 if they are in full-time education or training), they will receive a children’s pension until they are no longer eligible to receive a pension.
Looking after your loved ones
If you’ve recently married, or had children, you can update the information the Trustee holds about your beneficiaries. This is so that they know who you wish to receive any money owed when you die.
The Trustee has the final say on who gets a lump sum when you die. However, it is guided by your wishes. To let the Trustee know who you’d like to receive a lump-sum death benefit, please download an Expression of Wish form.
Letting us know someone has died
If a member of the Scheme has recently died, you will need to contact the Scheme Administrator, Equiniti:
Email: dbadmin.reading@equiniti.com
Phone: 0345 268 0286
Write: Equiniti Group plc, 27 Kings Road, Reading, Berkshire RG1 3AR
No longer working for Vodafone?
If you paid into the J O Grant & Taylor Pension Scheme whilst you were employed by Vodafone, you will have a preserved pension.
This means your pension benefits stay in the Scheme until you reach Normal Retirement Age. How much you get will depend upon your final pensionable salary when you stopped working for us and how long you worked for Vodafone.
Your preserved pension will increase each year between the date you left and your Normal Retirement Age. These annual increases will be dependant on the Rules in place at the time of your membership.
Once you are ready to retire you have a choice to make about how you take your benefits – find out more about your retirement options.