- MetLife Assurance research shows increasing focus on partnership approach from employers and trustees
- But two out of five employers are not aware of de-risking options
Employers are becoming more engaged with the management of their pension schemes and increasingly taking primary responsibility for de-risking, according to research1 from MetLife Assurance Limited (“MetLife Assurance”).
The study shows 61% of companies surveyed with turnover of £1m+ accept primary responsibility in partnership with trustees or sole responsibility for de-risking compared with 46% when the research was last conducted in 2010.
Of this 61%, 40% say de-risking is the employer’s primary responsibility in conjunction with trustees while 21% say it is their sole responsibility. That compares with figures from 2010 where 24% of companies surveyed said employers’ had primary responsibility in conjunction with trustees and 22% said they had sole responsibility.
Trustees share this view – MetLife Assurance’s research2 among trustees shows 92% believe they have a shared responsibility, with 48% saying it is primarily the trustee in conjunction with the employer and 44% primarily the employer in conjunction with the trustees responsibility.
Wayne Daniel, Chief Executive Officer at MetLife Assurance said: “Employers increasing engagement with pension schemes and acceptance of responsibility is welcome and signifies more collegiate working relationships with sponsors and trustees”.
The research also shows that the pensions industry continues to raise awareness of buy-ins, asset allocation and buyouts as de-risking strategies. Around 37% of employers surveyed were aware of buy-ins while 33% were aware of asset allocation and 28% were aware of buyouts.
However perhaps more worrying were the 42% who were unaware of any de-risking strategies when presented with a list of solutions.
Trustees showed high levels of awareness of de-risking with 66% of those surveyed having a plan in place to de-risk in the next five years compared with 60% surveyed in 2010.
Wayne Daniel continues: “The industry can take some comfort from the levels of awareness of buy-ins and buyouts but clearly more needs to be done to help employers understand the de-risking options open to them. It is expected that the closer working relationship between employers and trustees will be beneficial when exploring solutions and achieving the best outcomes for schemes and their members”.
|
