Endowment - Aviva

A

Absolutely assigned: This is where the policyholder (the assignor) transfers the whole of the benefits and obligations under a policy to another person or organisation (the assignee). This could be for money or as a gift. This means that the assignee becomes responsible for paying any premiums or contributions and is also entitled to the benefits. Following an absolute assignment, the previous owner of the policy has no rights over the policy and can’t receive any information on it.
Accountant in Bankruptcy: The office of the Accountant of Bankruptcy is an independent department of the Scottish Courts Administration set up to administer bankruptcy. It only applies in Scotland. There would normally be a dedicated statutory officer responsible to each case.
Act and Warrant in Sequestration: This is a document issued by the court formally passing a debtor's estate to the control of a permanent trustee. This is used in Scotland if a person is declared bankrupt.
Assignee: The person or organisation to whom the legal title and/or benefits of the policy have been assigned.
Assignor: The person who has assigned the legal title and/or benefits of the policy. The assignor has a continuing liability under the policy eg to pay the premiums.
Assignment: This is where the original policyholder transfers the policy over to another person or company. This could happen, for example, if you take the policy out to cover a mortgage and assign it to the mortgage lender or the other way round if the mortgage is paid off independently to the endowment policy (reassignments).
Attorney: A person legally appointed by another to act on their behalf.
Aviva: Aviva includes any former companies that are now part of the Aviva group, such as Norwich Union and Provident Mutual.

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B

Bankruptcy: Bankruptcy is one way of dealing with debts you can’t pay. Your assets can be used to pay your creditors. You are subject to certain restrictions and discharged (freed) from your debts after a period of time. Only a court can declare you bankrupt.
Bankruptcy Order: A bankruptcy order is issued by a County Court or High Court as a result of a petition for bankruptcy. The petition to declare an individual bankrupt could be filed by either a creditor or the debtor themselves.
Base Rate Tracker: An account provided by the Bank of Scotland for Aviva, where you can keep all or part of your maturity payment. You can deposit and withdraw money whenever you like.
Beneficiary: Anyone who could receive the benefits from a will, insurance policy, retirement plan or other contract.
Bonuses: The rate of return on a policy set by the insurance company actuary. The rate may vary from year to year.

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C

Cash-in value: The amount your policy is worth if you cash it in before the maturity date. This is sometimes called the surrender value.
Certificate of verification of identity: This is a certificate that is signed by a financial adviser to confirm that they have verified the identity of the person in question in compliance with all anti-money laundering regulations.
Certified copy: A certified copy is a copy of an original document which has been correctly certified as a true, complete and up-to-date copy of the original at a given date.
Creditor: A person or institution that is owed money.

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D

Debtor: A person or institution that owes a debt to someone else.
Deed of Assignment: This is a legal document that shows the original owner has transferred ownership of the policy to another person or company.
Deed of Reassignment: This is a legal document that shows that ownership of the policy has been transferred back to the original owner.
Deeds appointing trustees: A deed to be used for appointing one or more new trustees to a trust.
Deeds retiring trustees: A deed to be used for retiring one or more new trustees from a trust.
Direct credit: This is where we pay money electronically, directly into your bank account.

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E

Endowment: An endowment combines life insurance with an investment element. The premiums are usually paid regularly.
Estimated maturity value: This is the amount we expect your policy to be worth on the day it matures. This is based on investment assumptions and could change depending on actual market conditions.

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F

Final bonus rate: The final bonus is based on the year in which you invested and the point at which you leave the fund. It is not guaranteed.
Final maturity value: This is the actual amount your policy is worth on the day it matures.
Financial adviser: A financial specialist, who can help you make a decision about the best financial solution for you.

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G

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H

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I

Individual Voluntary Arrangement: This is a formal alternative for individuals who want to avoid bankruptcy. This can be an agreement between the individual and his or her creditors. A formal repayment proposal is normally presented to a debtor’s creditors through an insolvency practitioner.
Inflation: This is the increase in the cost of living over time. Inflation means that there is a fall in the purchasing value of money over time.
Investment: Your money is pooled with that of other investors and placed into financial assets, such as shares, fixed interest and property. The aim is to provide growth on your money.
Insolvency practitioner: Someone who is licensed and authorised to act in relation to an insolvent individual, partnership or company. An insolvency practitioner can be a chartered accountant or, more unusually, a solicitor.

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J

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K

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L

Letter of no further interest: A letter of no further interest shows that a company or individual which previously had an interest in the policy no longer has any interest in the policy.
Life insured/Life assured: This is the person shown on the policy whose death will mean we pay out the policy benefits.
Life insurance: Life insurance promises the payment of an agreed sum of money if the life assured (the person whose life is insured) dies within a specified period of time.

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M

Maturity date: This is the date on which your endowment policy ends.
Money laundering: This is the process by which criminals disguise and hide the money made from their crimes. We are legally obliged to make checks on all our policyholders to make sure that money is not being laundered.
Mortgage endowment promise: In 2000, we identified a shortfall on a number of mortgage-related endowment policies. We made a promise then that we would make an extra payment to cover the actual shortfall up to 31 December 1999 based on a 6% projection. This applied as long as the future returns on the underlying investments averaged at least 6% a year after tax at the policy's maturity date.
Mortgage interest relief at source (MIRAS): This was available to people taking out mortgages in the UK between the early 1970s and April 2000, when it was abolished by the government. It offered homeowners tax relief on their mortgage interest payments up to a certain limit.

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N

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O

Official Receiver: A civil servant of the Insolvency Service and an officer of the Bankruptcy Court. They have offices throughout England and Wales and their main duties are to:

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P

Permanent Trustee in Sequestration: The insolvency practitioner elected by the creditors or appointed by the court to take possession of the debtor's estate and to realise assets for the benefit of the creditors. If a permanent trustee is not elected by the creditors, the Accountant in Bankruptcy will be appointed. This only applies in Scotland.
Premiums: The regular amount you pay into your endowment every month.
Proof of bank identity: This is proof that the bank account you have asked us to pay the money to belongs to you. It can take the form of a bank statement, a cancelled cheque or a paying-in slip. We ask for this to comply with anti-money laundering regulations as we can only pay the proceeds of the policy to the rightful owner.
Proof of identity: This is proof that you are who you say you are. We will accept your current passport, your current driving licence, your current national ID card, your current benefit book or a current tax year HMRC coding document. We will also ask to see a recent bank or building society statement or a recent utility bill.
Proof of residency: This is proof that you live where you claim to live. We will ask to see a recent bank or building society statement or a recent utility bill.

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Q

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R

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S

Sequestration: The Scottish legal term for bankruptcy, where the insolvent person’s estate is removed from his or her control and transferred to a trustee.

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T

Tax relief: This is an amount that can be deducted from your annual income to reduce the amount on which you pay tax.
Trust: A trust is created when the owner of an asset (the 'settlor' of the trust in England and Wales or the 'truster' in Scotland) transfers that asset to persons (the 'trustees') who are bound to keep it for the benefit of others (the 'beneficiaries').; When a settlor puts an asset into trust, they are no longer the absolute owner of that property, although they can usually act as trustee. The trustees are the new legal owners of the asset and will have powers to deal with it. For example, the trustees can sell the asset and reinvest the money generated. However, the beneficiaries are the 'beneficial owners' of the trust property and the trustees should not benefit from the trust themselves.; It is possible that a trustee might also be a beneficiary under the trust.
Trust deed: This is the legal document that creates a trust.
Trustee: A trustee is the legal owner of a policy held in trust. A trustee oversees the policy for the benefit of the beneficiaries. There can be more than one trustee.
Trust Deed for Creditors: A deed by which an insolvent person transfers his estate to a trustee for the benefit of his creditors. This only applies in Scotland.
Trustee in Bankruptcy: When you are declared bankrupt, you have to hand over control of all assets and the financial interest in your home to a person appointed to manage your bankruptcy. This person is the Trustee in Bankruptcy.; They will be either an Official Receiver (an officer of the Bankruptcy Court) or an insolvency practitioner (an authorised debt specialist).; It takes time to appoint a trustee, so the Official Receiver manages your bankruptcy at first. They’ll collect information on your finances and protect your assets for your creditors. If you have significant assets, it is likely the Official Receiver will ask your creditors to appoint an insolvency practitioner as trustee. If you don't have significant assets the Official Receiver will act as trustee.