What does the Tax-Friendly Regular Savings Plan offer?
The Regular Savings Plan allows you to save as much as you want in a tax efficient way. The Regular Savings Plan combines tax-free saving, in addition to your tax-free ISA allowance, with tax-paid so that your savings can work harder for you and not the taxman. The tax friendly Regular Savings Plan gives your Plan a starter bonus too, if you invest more than £30 a month - a tasty start to your investment.
Tax-free and tax-paid savings
The Regular Savings Plan is a 10-year With Profits savings plan which invests in up to two accounts. The tax-free account invests your maximum £25 a month tax-free savings allowance which under current law, you're entitled to save exclusively with a friendly society. Any growth of this is completely free of Income and Capital Gains Tax. The rest, if any, of your monthly premium invests in the tax-paid account - that's tax-friendly because we automatically deduct the tax on any growth. On maturity there will be no tax to pay, even for a higher rate taxpayer. You can save from as little as £15 a month and there's no limit to how much you can save in this account.
Premiums in both accounts are paid into the Scottish Friendly With-Profits Fund which invests in stocks and shares, fixed interest funds and cash for long-term growth as well as a degree of security. The fund cannot claim back tax from dividend income received from investments in UK shares.
When your Regular Savings Plan matures in 10 years there's no tax for you to pay.
A starter bonus to boost your return - if you invest more than £30 a month
Your starter bonus is added to your Plan, if you invest more than £30 a month, and is designed to reduce the effect of charges on your Plan. It's based on the amount you invest. If you save between £30 and £50 a month, a quarter of the first year's premium will be added to the guaranteed cash sum as a starter bonus. If you save more than £50 a month, the starter bonus will be half of your first year's premiums. That's £600 if you save £100 a month. Please note that to get the full benefit of your starter bonus, you will need to make all payments due.
A guaranteed cash sum - plus potential bonuses!
When you take out a Regular Savings Plan, you have the reassurance of knowing that after 10 years, or earlier if you should die, you will get back a guaranteed minimum cash sum. The value of the guaranteed sum, which protects part of your total investment, is based on your current age and the amount you pay each month for the whole term. If you cash in early you may not get back as much as you have paid in.
Your main long-term growth potential comes from bonuses which may be added to the guaranteed cash sum. As well as regular bonuses which may be added annually, a final bonus may also be added at the end of the term – a final bonus could make up a significant part of the total bonuses added. The value of bonuses depends on how much profit the With-Profits Fund makes, how much you have invested in each account and how we decide to distribute it. As we don't have any shareholders, all our profits are shared among savers like you. Although bonuses are not guaranteed, once added they cannot be taken away, provided you pay all your premiums and keep the plan until the end of the term.
You're in charge
There's no upper limit to how much you can save in the Regular Savings Plan (the minimum is £15 a month) but the more you save the bigger the payout could be at the end of 10 years. You'll see how both your tax-free and tax-paid savings are performing from your annual statement.
Life cover built in
Your Regular Savings Plan automatically includes life cover so that if you were to die during the term of the plan, you have the reassurance of knowing your family would receive a cash sum at a difficult time. The amount of life cover depends on age and may be subject to medical conditions. Anyone aged between 16 and 64 can invest. You should consider if life cover is appropriate for your financial needs.
Scottish Friendly's past performance
Scottish Friendly is one of the UK's top friendly societies with a long and proven track record. Had the tax-free Regular Savings Plan and bonus been available ten years ago, someone who started saving £60 a month then would have just received a cheque for £9,663.*
Investing in the tax friendly Regular Savings Plan over ten years gives your money the potential to grow into a cash sum that could be really useful to you.
While this particular plan was not available 10 years ago, the With-Profits Fund into which it invests was. Over the past decade, Scottish Friendly with profits plans have enjoyed consistent high performance in the annual Money Management magazine with profits performance survey and have achieved a top ten position in the most recent survey †.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance. Bonuses are not guaranteed. If you cash in the Regular Savings Plan before the end of the term you may not get back as much as you have paid in. Capital values are not guaranteed with this plan although they are in building society accounts where growth prospects are more certain and where they benefit from ease of access.
"*Source: Scottish Friendly. Based on someone aged 40 next birthday at outset saving £60 per month. Figures shown are based on £25 a month in a Scottish Friendly with profits tax-free account and £35 a month in a Scottish Friendly tax-paid account maturing 1 October 2007. The special starter bonus of £360 is included. ** Source: Morningstar's. 10 years to 1 October 2007 based on £25 per month into UK Savings £2,500+ Investment Gross and £35 per month into £2,500+ Investment Net. This is a Morningstar index which measures the performance of the savings accounts of a number of current and ex-building societies. † Source: Money Management magazine, survey of with profits performance 1997-2007. April 2007.
Apply now
Applying is easy. Simply click on the Apply Now link, read the Key Features then complete and submit your application today. Or if you'd prefer to apply by post, download an application form, read the Key Features then complete it and post it to:
Scottish Friendly Assurance, FREEPOST, Glasgow G2 4BR
When you start saving with us, you'll receive a gift. Choose either a £25 Marks & Spencer or iTunes vouchers. Don't forget to select which gift you would like on your application form.
Or, you can request an information pack to be sent to you in the post. This pack includes further information on the Tax-Friendly Regular Savings Plan and an application form.
If you are in any doubt as to whether this product is suitable for you please contact your Financial Adviser.
If you apply for this product, for your records, we recommend you print or save a copy of this and any other relevant pages together with a copy of the Key Features.
