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Insurance industry

Trinity Mirror Employees Face Big Cuts in Pensions Due to Equitable Life Crisis

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Trinity Mirror employees are bracing themselves for big cuts in their company pensions after discovering that the newspaper group's pension fund invested millions in Equitable Life, the beleaguered life insurer. This makes Trinity Mirror the second company to fall victim to Equitable's financial difficulties, following a similar scandal involving Mirror Group in the 1990s. The company is now seeking a new provider of top-up pensions, a move that may result in significant financial losses for its employees.

Key Takeaways:

  • Trinity Mirror's pension fund invested millions in Equitable Life, a move that may result in significant financial losses for its employees.
  • The company is seeking a new provider of top-up pensions due to Equitable's financial difficulties.
  • This is the second pensions disaster to hit Trinity Mirror in ten years, following a similar scandal involving Mirror Group in the 1990s.
  • The main Mirror Group pension scheme is worth £561.4 million, with £85.6 million in the Mirror Group Newspapers pension scheme and 2,312 members.
  • Employees are facing big cuts in their company pensions due to Equitable's with-profits policyholders losing thousands of pounds after it removed seven months' investment growth from their policies.
  • Equitable Life closed to new business this month to fill a £1.5 billion hole in its finances after the House of Lords ruled against its move to cut pension bonuses to holders of guaranteed annuity rate policies.
  • A Trinity employee expressed sympathy for the Mirror people, who had to deal with Robert Maxwell's pension scandal in the 1990s and now face Equitable Life's crisis.

Statistics:

  • The main Mirror Group pension scheme is worth £561.4 million.
  • The Mirror Group Newspapers pension scheme is worth £85.6 million and has 2,312 members.
  • Families of Equitable Life with-profits policyholders will lose thousands of pounds after the company removed seven months' investment growth from their policies.
  • The House of Lords ruled against Equitable Life's move to cut pension bonuses to holders of guaranteed annuity rate policies, which has contributed to a £1.5 billion hole in the company's finances.

Sources:

  • The Times, 2000

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