We looked at the market as a whole and used the information coming over our own web site from the thousands of people using the site to get more help and information as a base for understanding the market. We then looked individually at around 75 companies* in the market, writing to them to get up to date information in August 2009 on their “with-profits book”. We reviewed their web sites and looked at the FSA annual returns from these companies. We reviewed their Principles and Practices of Financial Management (PPFM). We spoke with the key people at the biggest companies looking to gauge their view on the market. Finally we reviewed from other sources the various snapshot surveys undertaken this year –and before- on the performance in the market. Our survey has essentially taken nine months to prepare and we believe this now constitutes the biggest consumer based review of the market ever undertaken.