Pension beneficiaries

Pension beneficiaries

Nominating a beneficiary for your pension will help your loved ones continue life without you. A beneficiary is someone you nominate to receive your account balance, AKA a ‘death benefit’, in the event of your death.

There are two ways your GuildPension account balance can be paid to your beneficiaries.

Here's the difference:

1. Reversionary pensions

A reversionary pension is when what is left in your pension account at the time of your death is paid to your reversionary beneficiary (eg the person you want to give your money to) in the form of an income stream – much like a regular pension income stream . One of the benefits of this is that it can ensure your pension payments continue to go to your spouse or dependants, so there is no financial disruption to them. For a full list of who is eligible to receive your death benefits, read our Pension PDS.

Quick facts about revisionary beneficiaries

• You can only nominate one reversionary beneficiary, and you must do this at the time you open your account. If you change your mind and want to nominate a new beneficiary, you’ll have to close your account and start a new one.

• If you don't nominate a reversionary beneficiary, then your account balance will be paid as one or more lump sums to eligible beneficiaries, decided on by the Trustee. If we can’t figure out who your beneficiaries should be, we’ll follow standard superannuation laws.

• Once you’re gone, a reversionary beneficiary can change the payment frequency and amount OR decide to take a lump sum payment instead.

• If your revisionary beneficiary dies while they’re still receiving death benefits from you, the remaining money in your account will be paid as a lump sum to their eligible beneficiaries.

If you would like further information about any of this, please contact our team on 1800 060 215.

2. Lump sum death benefit nomination

If an income stream doesn’t seem like the right option for your beneficiary, you can let us know that you’d rather they receive your account balance as a lump sum payment instead. You can indicate your preference for this by logging in to your online account or calling our team for general advice on 1800 060 215.