BOBs Not Dead

Since the implementation of IORP II in 2021, rumours had been circulating that the Finance Act would also bring in restrictions that would see an end to the Buy Out Bond (BOB). This fortunately did not occur last year but could still become the case in this or future year’s Finance Acts. For this reason, we think it is timely to look at the BOB and the solutions it can provide now before it’s too late. 

A Buy Out Bond is an individual pension bond established in your name. You can transfer your pension benefits into the bond if you leave a company pension scheme or if your company pension scheme is shut down. The BOB enables you to take control of your existing employment related pension benefits and invest them in order to make them work for you. It is not unusual for people to change employment many times during their career and a BOB provides a vehicle for you to manage your previous pension benefits and invest them in a way that suits your needs.

A major advantage of the BOB is that it is not affected by the IORP II restrictions on unregulated investments such as property. If you currently have an occupational/company pension, and wish to buy property, you can wind up this pension and transfer the benefits to a BOB to facilitate this. You can then set up a new occupational pension at a later date, to fund future contributions.

Another significant benefit of transferring your pension benefits to a BOB is that, on death, the full value of the scheme is paid out to the estate, unlike the maximum of 4 times final salary plus a refund of member contributions that would be payable from an occupational scheme. One caveat though is that for this to apply the client cannot be a member of another pension scheme related to the same employment. So, under most circumstances, the benefits in a BOB become preserved benefits. 

If you would like to learn more about the ITC Buy Out Bond, please speak to your Financial Advisor or email justask@independent-trustee.com.

Glenn Gaughran
Head of Business Development and Marketing

_{*Please note this content is the view of the author and not of Independent Trustee Company}