Investment Bond information

Sterling

The Sterling Investment Bond and the funds you invest in are provided by Zurich Assurance Ltd, trading as Sterling.

We work with a number of fund managers to provide our customers with a wide choice of investment opportunities. We aim to ensure the range of funds available meets the needs and expectations of our customers.

We regularly review the range of funds we make available to make sure we're offering a broad range of investments that offer appropriate value for money.

Fund managers

The role of a fund manager is to seek out the best investment opportunities in line with their fund's investment objectives.

Fund managers use their knowledge of the companies, markets and territories in which the fund can invest. They use this expertise to decide on where to invest, and when and how to adjust the relative proportions of different asset types.

The fund manager keeps these decisions under constant review, through continuing analysis, research and regular meetings with the companies in which the fund is making or considering investment.

Sterling is a trading name of Zurich Assurance Ltd

Zurich is a leading multi-line insurance provider with a global network of subsidiaries and offices. With about 60,000 employees, Zurich delivers a wide range of general insurance and life products and services for individuals, small businesses, mid-sized and large companies, including multinational corporations, in more than 170 countries.

Sterling Investment bond charges

We take a fund based charge. This is a percentage based on the value of your plan and the options you chose when you took out your plan. For details please refer to your plan's key features, key features illustration and your terms and conditions.

Fund expenses

These are deducted from the funds to pay for the day-to-day activities of managing each fund and are reflected in the unit price of the fund.

These include expenses, taxes, duties and other charges incurred in the buying, selling, valuation, management and maintenance of the fund’s investments including auditors’ and custodians’ fees.

Fund expenses are not fixed as they change each day based on what the fund has bought or sold on a particular day.

Annual management charges

Some of the funds have an annual management charge, which is a percentage of the value of the units in the fund.

It is deducted from the fund every day before unit prices are calculated.

They could change in the future.

Initial charges

There may be an initial charge on some funds before we buy units. This may be a one off charge or a difference between the daily buying and selling price which is often known as a bid/offer spread.

Fund transaction charges

On a day when you cash in your plan, more money may be moving out of the fund (or any of the funds it invests in) than into it. In this case, some of the assets of the fund (or funds) will have to be sold and the value of your plan may be reduced to reflect the impact on the fund unit price of the costs and charges associated with the sale.

You can only make monthly payments to the ISA and the Investment Account. The option is not available on the Investment Bond.

Investment Bond

You can make additional single payments at any time. The current minimum single payment is £1,000.

However, if your Bond is held subject to a Discretionary Discounted Gift Trust or a Discounted Gift (Bare) Trust, then you cannot make additional payments.

How do I make an additional payment?

If you’re making the payment by cheque, please enclose the cheque, made payable to ‘Sterling’ with the form.

Our contact details are available under the 'Get on Touch' tab.

We'll write and let you know we've received and invested your cheque.

You can make regular withdrawals or one-off surrenders at any time. If you make withdrawals from your bond or investment account, you need to consider any tax liability you may incur. You should speak to your adviser to find out how a withdrawal or tax may affect your investment.

All we need from you is a completed surrender form, which you can download below. We only accept completed surrender forms by post.

Please always refer to the Terms and Conditions of your policy as there may be exit penalties for taking one-off withdrawals.

We may need further supporting documents to make a payment such as Trust Forms, Power of Attorney Forms or Identification documents depending on your policy.

We may be able to make a payment direct to your bank account by the Banking Automated Clearing System (BACS). Please let us know your bank sort code and account number on the form. Alternatively, we'll send you a cheque to your address.

We will write to you confirming when the withdrawal has been paid.

Regular Withdrawal Requests

If you want to take regular withdrawals you need to complete a request form for your plan. You can find the form below.

You can set up, change or stop regular withdrawals at any time.

The minimum withdrawal you can take is currently £50 per withdrawal. You should bear this in mind when deciding how often to take withdrawals.

The current maximum amount you can set for regular withdrawals is 7.5% of the total fund value of the account each year, unless the account was opened before 6th April 2005, in which case you can withdraw up to 10%.

For information on how to make a complaint, please see our Making a complaint page.

Fund choice

Depending on your investment plan, you may link it to a different fund or funds available to that plan or investment.

You may also change the fund, or funds, for your regular payments and leave the units you have already bought in the fund, or funds, they are in.

Important information

• You will need to complete a Fund Switch form.
• Exact details of fund switching for your plan or investment are set out in the terms and conditions.
• Before you make any decisions about fund switching, we strongly suggest you discuss this with your adviser.
• If the plan or investment is written in trust, we may need each trustee's signature - check the provisions of your trust to see who needs to sign the form.
• We accept faxed or emailed forms.
• We'll confirm your new fund choice in writing.
• We don’t currently make a charge for switching funds. If in future we decide to charge, we’ll tell you. However, switching may result in higher fund charges, depending on the funds you are switching between. If you are switching, you should contact your adviser for the latest fund charge

Download a Bond switch form and send the completed form to us at:

Sterling Centre
PO Box 461
Bishops Cleeve
Cheltenham
Gloucestershire
GL52 8ZN

If you would like to make a full or partial surrender you need to complete a bond surrender request form. Depending on which surrender method you choose, the tax consequences may be different so we recommend you speak to your adviser before making a decision.