NFU Mutual With Profits
NFU Mutual With Profits
RWP Research Findings, Overview and Comments
NFU Mutual is a traditional mutual society; making it unusual in today’s With-Profits market-place where the majority of With Profits funds are now run by shareholder owned insurers.
The NFU Mutual With Profits position is strong compared to most of the rest of the market. They are traditionally seen as one of the better companies in this sector. As a mutual society they retain some, if not most, of the traditional hallmarks of the with-profits concept. Including for many policies guarantees on pay-outs on maturity, at a specified date or at retirement; and with some policies guaranteed rates of income in payment.
A mutual society is one where its members effectively own the business.
They generally have (comparatively) good With Profits performance, but this can vary depending on the type of policy and when it was taken out.
They also run both conventional and unitised With Profits policies; this distinction can be important as it can affect the guarantees and future prospects for policyholders to consider.
We assess NFU Mutual as a company easy to deal with, providing transparency and they are financially strong. However in reviewing policies for With Profits investors we see a wide mix of past performance, depending on when a policy was taken out and what type of policy it is. Some past performance is poor; some is good. Some policies have compelling reasons to hold onto them, some are clearly risky with limited reward and offer policyholders limited value. On balance we feel many NFU Mutual policies represent the better end of the market; avoiding some of the difficulties other providers have experienced.
However this should not breed complacency as with any company, your position will be dependent on a range of factors - you may be holding something solid or something flaky; we recommend if you hold a With Profits policy it should be fully reviewed on its own merits to judge how it is has performed and its future prospects.
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Company ownership position
NFU Mutual is the operating name – the formal title is The National Farmers Union Mutual Insurance Society Limited. This is a company limited by guarantee and owned by its members (“the Society”). Membership of the Society is conferred by the issue of a policy (including with-profits, non-profit and general insurance).
Company history
In 1910, seven farmers from the Midlands launched a scheme to entice new members to the Farmers' Union, by offering insurance at a cost price.
NFU Mutual is a national insurer with over 900,000 customers and 300 local branches nationwide.
NFU Mutual With Profits funds
There is one With Profit fund in keeping with their mutual status; this fund sits behind a variety of different product types e.g. bonds, pensions or annuities and the terms applying – and therefore the return – are dependent on the product terms and which product a policyholder has. The actual management, performance and other features of the fund and the various product types can be found by using the links below or please contact us and we can help you get all the individual information on your policy.
For the latest with-profits bonus information please click here:
http://www.nfumutual.co.uk/Global/PDFs%20-%20document%20library/Investments/SA_WPF_0215_DR4.pdf
For information on how NFU Mutual approach the management of their with-profits, including their current asset allocation mix and customer friendly documents on each product type please click here:
http://www.nfumutual.co.uk/personal/investments/our-funds/with-profits-funds/