Personal Finance has been receiving many queries relating to a recent article on retirement fund surpluses, and exactly what individuals are entitled to in terms of the proposed legislation, called the Pension Funds Second Amendment Bill.
In essence, the Bill gives existing fund members, former members and employers a right to share in any surpluses in their existing or former retirement funds.
The Bill also puts in place, for the first time, minimum benefits. These minimum benefits include minimum pension increases for pensioners, and minimum amounts that must be paid out when you leave a fund. If any surplus exists in funds, pensioners and former members will have their benefits topped up to the minimum levels first, and then the balance of the surplus will be split between all the stakeholders.
If you belonged to a fund within the last 20 years, you may be entitled to share in any surplus that exists in the fund.
If you are a present or past member of a retirement fund, you don't have to do anything to ensure that you get your share. It is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees of that fund to share out the surplus.
If you want to know whether you are entitled to receive anything, you should contact the board of the relevant fund.
If you are a former member of a fund, it is a good idea to contact the Board of Trustees with your contact details - part of the problem in giving former members a share in any surpluses is going to be tracking down those members. You should also send a copy of your letter to the Financial Services Board (FSB), which is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Bill once it becomes law.
The fax number of the FSB was incorrectly published in Personal Finance recently. We regret the error. The correct fax number is (012) 347-8787.