Part of the Santander Group

Ownership status;

Phoenix Life Assurance Limited is a life assurance company owned by Resolution plc. It was previously owned by Abbey National and was called Abbey National Life. Abbey National Life began to provide life and pension policies in1993 for Abbey customers. At that time, Abbey owned an older life insurance company, Scottish Mutual, which already had a large with-profit fund. Scottish Mutual is now also owned by Resolution.

Resolution specialise in running life assurance policy and pension fund assets from failed companies that are closed to new business. Many industry experts ask "If the company is not trying to attract new business, then why would they care about generating the maximum returns for the policy holders'?"

Range Of Policies

Policies offered by Phoenix life can be divided into four main sections. Firstly the traditional with-profits policies, which include whole life policies, traditional with profit endowment policies, which started in 1996 or earlier and was purchased from royal life. Another traditional with-profits policy is a with-profits traditional pensions policy (i.e. one that does not invest in units) which started in 1996 or earlier and was purchased from Royal Life.

Also offered are unitised with-profits policies, which can usually be identified by whether you have a Unitised With Profits bond or a Lifestyle bond from Royal and SunAlliance which started in January 1999 or later. Also if you have a unit linked "Living Pensions" or "Pensions Solutions" policy.

Phoenix also separate any with-profit bond policy started before 1997.

One final type of policy are those which invest in profit plus fund units only.

These are identifiable If you have a unit linked pensions policy, which can invest in Profit Plus Fund units. Most such policies (or schemes) will have been started with Royal Life prior to 1996.