BA offloads pensions

LEGAL & General has secured a record-breaking deal to insure £4.4bn of historic pension scheme liabilities for British Airways.

The insurance giant said its deal – the largest bulk annuity policy ever arranged with a UK pension scheme – covers some 22,000 pensioners.

L&G reported £500m of pension risk transfer sales in the first half of 2018, with the BA annuity deal boosting its year-to- date sales to £5.3bn.

L&G chief executive nigel Wilson claimed that up to £27bn of deals are in the pipeline as there is ‘strong demand for insurance, supported by increasing affordability, as trustees seek to improve security for members and companies look to remove legacy liabilities’.