MONTREAL, Dec. 1, 2003 – Standard Life announced today two key additions to its free on-line retirement planning and educational services available in its VIP Room Web site for Group Savings and Retirement plan members: the “Retirement Income Illustrator” and additional learning modules from “The Financial Educator Inc.”
The “Retirement Income Illustrator” is the first tool of its kind in the pension industry and is exclusive to Standard Life. “We designed this comprehensive tool to assist members in maintaining a sound retirement strategy from the accumulation to the payout phases,” explains Roger Renaud, Senior Vice-President of Marketing and Sales for Group Savings & Retirement.
The tool provides members with an automatic projection of their retirement income based on their registered assets and allows them to compare various scenarios of their retirement income payment options. Members can also use the tool to create their own illustrations or to learn more about the different alternatives available at retirement. “The Retirement Income Illustrator enables plan members to prepare for what comes beyond retirement and allows them to make the most of the savings they have accumulated during their working years,” continues Mr. Renaud.
The second important addition is to Standard Life’s on-line education program, offered in association with “The Financial Educator Inc.”, which features ten new learning modules. These new modules are designed to allow members to enhance and expand their knowledge on financial, retirement and life cycle planning.
Important changes such as these are just another reason why Standard Life is one of the premier providers of Group Savings and Retirement services in Canada and reaffirm its commitment to offering leading edge financial planning and educational programs to its members.
“It’s about going beyond the basics to offer complete retirement support for plan members,” says Louise Pellerin-Lacasse, Vice-President, Marketing, Group Savings & Retirement. “We are dedicated to providing the most helpful and user-friendly financial tools in the Canadian market – tools that help plan members understand their retirement income options and set members on a course to achieve their retirement objectives.”
Notes:
Over 400,000 Canadian workers currently benefit from Standard Life’s free on-line planning and education program, which represents only a part of the comprehensive range of services available to Group Savings & Retirement plan members. These services also include live educational seminars, assistance
from licensed, salaried financial planners and retirement specialists via the Financial Security Hotline and a 24-hour automated telephone service that allows members to manage their accounts.
In Canada, The Standard Life Assurance Company and its affiliates have $30 billion in assets under management and offer a wide range of financial products and services to over one million individuals, including group insurance and pension plan members. Its 2,400 employees are committed to providing superior customer service from its principal office in Montr�al and its 20 sales offices across the country. Products and services include group savings and retirement, group insurance, individual life insurance, savings and retirement, mutual funds and portfolio management services. Total premium income and deposits reached $3.6 billion in 2002. (www.standardlife.ca)
The Standard Life Assurance Company, founded in Edinburgh (Scotland) in 1825, is Europe’s largest mutual life insurance company with over 14,200 employees, $208 billion in assets under management and over five million customers in the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Spain, India, China and the United States. The Company has also established a
representative office in South Korea. The Company is described as having excellent financial strength by the two most prominent international, independent rating agencies. Its total premium income reached $26.8 billion in 2002. ( www.standardlife.com ).
