Your Santander pension is now administered by Gallagher.
Latest information
Find out how to register on the new member portal.
Background
The Santander (UK) Group Pension Scheme Trustees delegate the day-to-day administration of the Scheme to a third party. They are responsible for maintaining records, updating information, and importantly calculating and paying your pension. This work used to be carried out by Aptia and is now carried out by Gallagher.
Gallagher is an award-winning pension administrator with a track record of using technology to make pension scheme members’ lives easier. The Trustees looked at a number of pension administrators and considered this change carefully before choosing Gallagher, and we believe their emphasis on putting members first is in line with our own values.
Gallagher’s key offerings:
- Strong service-level commitments
- Commitment to learning and improving
- Secure online member portal with self-serve options
- Good quality member communications
The Trustees’ assessment is that these features are vital to the continued provision of pension services to the Scheme and its members. In particular, the digital capabilities of Gallagher, and its partner organisations, will lead to significant positive changes to the administration of the Scheme and improve your experience of the Scheme.
Key dates
Early June 2024
We’ve launched our new website with more information about your pension and informed you of the change of administrator.
Mid July 2024
If you are an active or deferred member, we wrote to you to remind you of the dates you needed to be aware of if you’re retiring before November 2024. If you needed to change your address, you could only do this through Benpal or the Contact Mercer Admin portal up until 23 September 2024.
From 5 August 2024
If you are planning to retire before November 2024, you needed to return all your completed forms to Aptia before 5 August 2024. If you return your forms after this date, your monthly pension payments will not be set up until after the changeover to Gallagher is complete.
From 23 September 2024
After this date please do not update your details in Benpal or the Contact Mercer Admin portal. If you need to change your address, you will need to wait until after 28 October 2024 and do this through the new member portal or by contacting Gallagher.
From 25 October 2024
Benpal was switched off. Documents held on Benpal were not transferred to the new member portal so you needed to save any documents you wish to keep before 25 October 2024.
From 28 October 2024
The changeover is complete. You can now register on the new member portal to manage your pension. We will write to you again with instructions for how to register.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why have you changed the administrator?
We want you to get the most out of your pension and feel confident managing it. It’s also important to us that we’re making the most of advances in technology to improve your experience as a Scheme member. We expect the change to an automated system to make our processes more efficient, giving you a better service and offering you more ways to manage your pension online.
Why did you choose Gallagher?
Gallagher is an award-winning pension administrator with a track record of using technology to make pension scheme members’ lives easier. We looked at a number of pension administrators and considered this choice carefully before choosing Gallagher, and we believe their emphasis on putting members first is in line with our own values.
Specifically, the key reasons for choosing Gallagher to provide this service are:
- Strong service-level commitments
- Commitment to learning and improving
- Secure online member portal with self-serve options
- Good quality member communications
What can I do in the new member portal?
You can:
- see details of your pension benefits
- submit queries online and check their progress through the Gallagher case tracker
- update your personal details if you are a deferred or pensioner member
- update your bank details if you’re receiving a pension
- let us know who you’d like to receive any benefits payable when you die
- see how much your pension benefits would be worth if you decided to transfer them to another scheme
- get a retirement quote to see how much your pension benefits could be worth when you retire
- complete your retirement request online
You can also download the Gallagher Guide mobile app to log into the member portal on the go.
Will the change of administrator affect the value of my pension?
No. The value of the pension benefits you’ve already built up in the Scheme won’t be affected in any way by the change of administrator.
Will the date my pension is paid change?
No, your pension payment date remains the same.
I want to transfer out of the Scheme, what do I need to know?
Transfer requests are now handled by Gallagher. In the immediate period after the changeover, the Gallagher team is prioritising pension payments, so there may be a short delay in completing your transfer request.
It’s important to remember that transfer values go up and down over time. Your transfer value is influenced by a number of factors, including market conditions and changes in life expectancy.
I need to update my details, where can I do that?
You can update your personal details on the new member portal or by contacting the Gallagher team. Go to the Get in touch page for their contact details.
Will I still be able to access my documents on Benpal?
You can no longer access any documents on Benpal. Documents held on Benpal have not been transferred to the new member portal.
Do I have to use the new member portal?
No, you’ll still be able to talk to a person on the phone, or deal with Gallagher in writing. Go to the Get in touch page for full contact details. We are aiming to make the member portal as easy to use as possible so most people will benefit from it.