ISA - Regular Premium

It is a tax-efficient savings plan for regular savings and lump sum investments, designed as a Investment ISA to comply with ISA regulations to shield your savings from income and capital gains taxes.

metfriendly's ISA is a Stocks & Shares ISA but you can, in addition, invest in a Cash ISA elsewhere if you wish.

There are limits on the amount of money you can pay into your ISA(s) in any one tax year:

• An overall maximum of £11,520, split between the two types and
• a maximum of £5,760 into a Cash ISA.

Although it is worth bearing in mind that the allowance is per individual tax payer, so - if you have a partner - the allowances double.

metfriendly ISAs are also more flexible than other forms of saving:

• We accept premiums from £50 per month.
• You can mix lump sums with regular savings (minimum £500).
• You can transfer ISAs from one provider to another.
• You can stop premiums or cash-in when you wish.

An example - What you might get back after 10 years for a regular monthly premium of £100:

• If investments grew at 3.0% a year - you would get back £12,100
• If investments grew at 5.5% a year - you would get back £13,700
• If investments grew at 8.0% a year - you would get back £15,600

The early years

The following examples show what you might get back. They assume that investments will grow at 5.5% a year.

Warning - if you cash in during the early years, you could get back less than you paid in.

The later years

• The deductions include the estimated cost of expenses, charges, any surrender penalties and other adjustments.
• The last line in the table shows that over a ten year period the effect of the total deductions could amount to £2,080.
• This would have the same effect as bringing down the investment growth from 5.5% a year to 2.8%.

You must be resident in the UK for tax purposes and over the age of 18. To invest with us you must work or have worked in the police service - or be the partner or close relative of such a person.

You can alter the amount you invest, subject to the minimum premium of £50 pm. You can also stop contributions and restart them at any time - but please remember that you only earn bonuses on the money invested.

Maximum: There is a maximum limit on the total amount that can be paid into ISAs for any individual over one tax year (6th April to 5th April) - this is announced by HM Revenue and Customs each October for the following tax year. For 2013/14, this limit is £11,520 in total spread over both Cash and Stocks and Shares ISAs.

Minimum: There is a minimim monthly premium of £50 for our regular premium ISA.

• Your monthly premium will continue from one tax year to the next unless you tell us otherwise
• At the start of each new tax year your monthly contribution will go into a new numbered certificate and we will send you a certificate showing your investments during the previous tax year.
• At the end of each calendar year, we add a bonus to all your investments and send you a bonus notice.
• Once added, bonuses are permanent additions to your investment with us.
• Bonuses are compounded, so in subsequent years you earn bonuses on the bonuses.
• Provided you invest each plan for at least 3 years, we normally add a final bonus when you cash it in.
• The ISA has no fixed term and you can leave it invested for as long as you wish. You should, however, view it as a medium to long term investment - at least 5 years.
• You can transfer your accumulated metfriendly ISA to another stocks and shares ISA provider, but please remember that our ISA is designed as a medium to long term investment.

You can transfer a Cash or Stocks and Shares ISA to us from another provider (no limit). Once transferred to us it cannot be transferred into a cash ISA.

You can invest for as long as you want; there is no fixed term and no maximum age limit. You can contact us at any time to cash in part or all of your plan, although you should bear in mind that the plan is designed as a medium to long term investment.

All you have to do is download a Surrender/Redemption Request Form (PDF), fill it in and post it to us. Alternatively you can send or fax us a signed letter detailing your request and giving details of the bank or building society account (which must be in your name) where we should pay your money.
For previous tax years, requests received by Friday are normally credited to your account the following Wednesday. For the current tax year, requests received prior to the month's end are normally credited to your account on the 7th of the following month. Where there is an intervening public holiday, different arrangements apply. Please contact us for more details.

Each separate certificate can be surrendered in full or in part. Partial surrenders can be made on multiple occasions.

The premiums are invested in the metfriendly With-Profits fund which is made up of equities, commercial property, government bonds, corporate bonds and cash. The example in the diagram shows the approximate "mix" as at 31st December 2012. For more information on how the with-profits fund works, please refer to How we manage the with-profits fund.

Bonuses are decided by the Board acting on the advice of the with-profits actuary. A key factor in determining bonuses is the investment return in recent years. Please view How we manage the with-profits fund for more details.

All of our assets can rise and fall with the stockmarket, although investing in a range of assets does provide some protection to the fund. It is possible that this will result in the value of your plans reducing from time to time.

Normally the plan value will not be less than the money you paid in plus all annual bonuses (and it will be greater when we pay a final bonus). However, we reserve the right to apply a market value reduction so that the encashment value more fairly reflects our investment performance. (The death benefit can never be affected by a market value reduction.)

Applications can be initiated online using one of the following forms: Regular Premium ISA or Lump Sum ISA.

If you are not currently serving in the London Police Services we will also require reasonable proof of identity (Copy Birth Certificate, Driving Licence or Passport).

Serving officers or staff in the Metropolitan and officers in the City of London Police Services can authorise us to take monthly premiums from their salary - both for their plan and that of their partner. Any amount subscribed in this way for a partner must be their own money.

If you are retired or a relative, or simply wish to pay by direct debit, we will send you a direct debit form (unless you already pay this way).

As an alternative to the online application you can print off and send us a completed application form, see PDF Application Form links in the menu on the right.

We will send you a certificate showing your benefits and a cancellation notice. If you change your mind, you can return the notice within 30 days for a full refund.

You cannot make any further contributions but you can leave what is already in the ISA to remain there and this will continue to qualify for normal ISA bonuses and tax treatment.

This plan will cease and the current value of your plan will be paid to your estate.

There is no liability for Income or Capital Gains Tax during the life of the plan, nor on cashing it in. You can even disregard it when completing your Tax Return (however this could be changed by the Government at any time).

• We do not offer or give financial advice.
• We do not make any form of commission or incentive payments.
• The cost of providing verbal or written information about this product is included in our overall expenses.

If you are unsure as to the suitability of this product, and wish to obtain personal advice, you should contact an independent financial adviser.

We will send you a bonus notice every year, showing you the annual bonuses that have been earned; any final bonus (payable on encashment) will not be shown.