Just Retirement cuts annuity delays

Just Retirement says it has reduced the average time it takes to set up an annuity by 30%.

In May, one of the busiest times of the year for the company, Just Retirement was able to complete applications in 22.4 days on average compared with the 32-day average recorded in 2009.

The company now aims to process annuity applications within 21 days, on average. The key to this, it believes, is further work around the pre-application stage where the company has already shown it can substantially reduce processing time by helping advisers ensure the initial applications are correct.

Pam Day, head of group customer services at Just Retirement, said: “The reduction in our processing time is yet another example of Just Retirement’s commitment to treating customers fairly. The 30% fall means that customers are getting their retirement income that much faster which, in today’s uncertain world, has to be a real benefit.”

In addition to enhanced annuities, Just Retirement offers lifetime mortgages, a form of equity release mortgage. This allows the homeowner to borrow a certain amount of capital against the value of their home. The loan, together with the accumulated interest, is repaid at the end of the mortgage.