// Arcadia has now secured retirement payouts to thousands of former Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins employees in a £850m deal with Aviva
// The new deal ceases negotiations about one of the UK’s most controversial corporate pension schemes
Thousands of pensioners left facing an uncertain retirement following the collapse of Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia empire have now had their money secured in a £850m deal with Aviva.
The Trustees of the Arcadia Group and Arcadia Group Senior Executive Pension Schemes have agreed to a buy-in with the FTSE 100 insurer, securing benefits for 8,800 members.
The first milestone of this deal – securing a buy-in with Aviva, was completed on 3 February 2023 with the initial premium payment of £850m.
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Aviva said it will provide members of the Arcadia Group Pension Scheme with the full Scheme benefits that they would have been entitled to if the insolvency and Pension Protection Fund (PPF) assessment period had not taken place.
For the Arcadia Group Senior Executive Pension Scheme, pensions have been secured at the level they would have been in 2022 if the insolvency and PPF assessment period had not happened.
Further work is being carried out to determine the future level of pension increases for members of the Arcadia Group Senior Executives Pension Scheme and members will be updated at the earliest opportunity.
Chair of Trustees Alda Andreotti said: “This is a positive development for members, securing their benefits for the long-term. Members will receive benefits based on their Arcadia Scheme pension, rather than receiving compensation from the PPF.
“This transaction is the result of our commitment to achieving the best outcome for members and I would like to thank all parties who collaborated with us. This includes our professional advisers, The Pensions Regulator and the PPF who have offered their guidance, support and reassuring protection to the Schemes during these challenging times.
“The Trustees are extremely pleased with this substantial development and we have already updated members directly on what the buy-in means for them. Our hard work will now continue to maximise the benefits for all members and prepare the Schemes for buy-out.”
The fate of Arcadia’s pensioners, comprising of popular brands including Topshop/Topman Burton and Dorothy Perkins, had been in the balance since Green was forced to put the group into administration back in 2020 – putting 13,000 jobs at risk at the time.
The group said the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, including the forced closure of its stores for prolonged periods, had “severely impacted trading across” all of its brands.
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