Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation
The question
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she will confirm that £836 million in cash terms was forecast to be spent on Equitable Life With-Profits Annuitants at the outset of the Equitable Life Payment Scheme; and that a discount rate of 4.4% was applied to reach the allocation of £625m for With-Profits Annuitants.
Answered by Treasury
In 2010 the Liberal Democrat Conservative coalition government chose to allocate up to £1.5 billion to the Equitable Life Payment Scheme, and the Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016. The only remaining part of the Payment Scheme in operation is the annual payments made to eligible With-Profit-Annuitants and the Scheme is on track to distribute the remainder of the £1.5 billion as planned.
Of the £1.5 billion, £775 million was allocated to be paid as lump sums to with profits non-annuitants and £625 million allocated to WPAs to be paid annually for the duration of the annuity. This includes a £100 million contingency fund to ensure there is provision for annuitants, should they live longer than their actuarial forecast and brings the total allocated to WPAs up to £725 million.
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