Given that preparing for retirement is among the major preoccupations of French savers, and that the transitional period under the Fillon Act will expire on 31 December 2008, Aviva Vie is offering a practical solution to companies wishing to top up their employees' pensions.
Given that preparing for retirement is among the major preoccupations of French savers, and that the transitional period under the Fillon Act will expire on 31 December 2008, Aviva Vie is offering a practical solution to companies wishing to top up their employees' pensions.
The launch of this offer is part of Aviva Vie's Good Advice approach, which involves helping all customers prepare for their retirement.
The Article 39 policies are based on a defined benefit system. Under this system the company agrees to pay its employees or a certain category of them a life annuity of a predefined amount, usually based on the final salary, during their retirement. To this end, the company takes out an insurance policy whose premiums are paid into a collective fund to help to cover the liabilities accepted. No early surrender or advances are permitted for Article 39 policies and the amount of the annuity paid is unrelated to the period of payment of premiums. These policies allow:
- Employees' income to be topped up when they retire by linking to an Article 39 policy.
- The company's tax bill to be reduced by deducting premiums paid from profits.
With Aviva Stratégie Retraite Article 39, Aviva Vie offers the company and its employees the opportunity to enjoy the advantages of a life insurance policy: flexible payment terms, a wide range of financial funds, and above all an individual actuarial investigation carried out by Aviva and a simple application process.
The company is free to choose its financial funds from the list of eligible funds from Aviva Gestion d'Actifs' range. In order to match the asset allocation to the investment horizon, Aviva Vie offers three specific types of allocation for Article 39 policies:
- The balanced approach, suitable for an investment horizon above eight years.
This approach is recommended where withdrawals* from the collective fund are largely made more than eight years after taking out the policy.
- The prudent approach, suitable for a "mixed" investment horizon.
This approach is recommended where withdrawals* from the collective fund are made partly before and partly after eight years.
- The safe approach, suitable for an investment horizon below eight years.
This approach is recommended where withdrawals* from the collective fund are largely made more than eight years after taking out the policy.
* Here, withdrawals means the payment of annuities to employees when they retire.
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Press Contacts:
Aviva Vie
David Chenu
Telephone: 01 76 62 67 92
E-mail: david_chenu@aviva.fr
HDL Communication
Alexandra Rigaud
Telephone: 01 58 65 20 15
E-mail: arigaud@hdlcom.com
Notes to editors:
About Aviva
Aviva is the leading provider of life and pensions to Europe with substantial positions in other markets around the world, making it the world's fifth largest insurance group based on gross worldwide premiums at 31 December 2006. Aviva's principal business activities are life insurance and long-term savings, fund management and general insurance, with total sales of €56.7 billion and funds under management of €499 billion at 31 December 2007.
With more than 150 years' experience in France, Aviva is among the top 10 players in the insurance market. Aviva France is distinguished by a balanced multidistribution model which has proved itself: 875 general agents, 1,800 agency staff, 400 life advisers, more than 1,000 brokers, partners (Union Financière de France and Médéric). Aviva France's partners also include AFER, the leading association of savers in France, and the Crédit du Nord Group. Specialising in unit-linked products, Aviva is well-known for the performance of its long-term funds and its strong commitment to its customers through its Good advice approach. Aviva has more than 3,300 employees. As at 31 December 2007, Aviva France recorded a consolidated turnover of €6.5 billion, a consolidated operating profit of €338 million (based on intrinsic value - EEV/IFRS norms) and managed assets worth €74.2 billion.