Facts and figures

Every year the Trustee must prepare the Trustee Report & Accounts. This includes information about the Trustee, their advisors and details about the assets of the Plan alongside an analysis of the contributions paid to the Plan and payments made from the Plan. The full document is available on the Plan website at www.mydowpension.co.uk but we have included below the summary of the membership at 31 December 2022 with an overview of contributions paid to the Plan during the year to 31 December 2022 and the payments made from the Plan.

The Trustee Report & Accounts is independently audited by Deloitte.

Membership

Members who have ceased further accrual to the Plan, but keep the right to pension benefits when they retire.

At 31 December 2022, the Plan’s membership looked like this:

¹ Members who are currently building up pension benefits through their company employment.
² Members who have left company employment but keep the right to pension benefits when they retire.
³ Members who are currently receiving their pension benefits.

Contributions and benefits

*Although assets have fallen significantly during the year, this fall is accompanied by an at least equal fall in liabilities meaning the funding position of both sections is still very strong. More information on the funding position can be read in the Summary Funding Statement below.

Summary Funding Statement

The formal triennial actuarial valuation as at 31 December 2021 was agreed and signed in March 2023.

Dow Services Section

The 2021 actuarial valuation report showed that the funding level of the Dow Services Section was 100.7%. The funding update at 31 December 2022 disclosed a funding level of 106% with the assets valued at £809m and the Section’s liabilities calculated by the Scheme Actuary at £761.8m.

Further information can be found in the Summary Funding Statement here.

DCL Section

The funding level of the DCL Section disclosed in the 2021 actuarial valuation report was 101.9%. The funding update at 31 December 2022 showed a funding level of 104% with the assets valued at £388.3m and the Section’s liabilities calculated by the Scheme Actuary at £375.3m.

Further information can be found in the Summary Funding Statement here.

The funding of the Dow Services Section has improved since the 31 December 2021 valuation due to a significant fall in liability value following the increase of gilt yields, which was partially offset by a fall in the value of the Dow Services Section assets. The DCL Section funding level has also improved slightly since the 31 December 2021 valuation. It is important to remember the liabilities of the DCL Section have been secured by the bulk annuity transaction carried out with Rothesay in December 2021. This was reported on in last year’s edition of Spotlight.

Please note that it is expected both Sections’ funding levels will vary over time, as both economic and investment market conditions change.

Funding level