Customer upgrade support
Upgrading to the new Nucleus Platform
We're making a multi-million pound investment in upgrading our service to you.
As part of major changes to our systems, your product is moving to our new, improved platform.
Here you’ll find important information to be aware of between now and the upgrade. We encourage you to explore the content of these pages - they supplement the details shared in the letters you’ll receive from us.
Keeping you informed
We’ll be writing to you regularly (via post) to ensure you know what to expect at each stage. What each letter will cover is outlined below:
Copies of your specific letters will be available in your document library on James Hay Online before the upgrade, and on Nucleus Platform following the upgrade - shortly after they've been mailed.
What will be different?
The investment we're making will ultimately mean;
- a better, more modern service
- a wider range of products and options
- simplified pricing
- the option to choose digital communication
- and, a more user-friendly platform.
Actions you need to take
As we get closer to the upgrade date there are a few changes you’ll want to be aware of and actions you’ll need to take.
Logging in for the first time
If you've got a James Hay Online account:
- when you first log into it after the upgrade to access a product that’s now on the Nucleus Platform, you’ll be redirected to the new platform to set up new user credentials. See our step by step guide.
- a small number of older products won't be upgraded - find out more here.
- should you have both a product that’s being upgraded to the new platform, and one that isn’t – you’ll be asked whether you wish to remain on James Hay Online or set up access to the Nucleus Platform.
- Login to James Hay Online.
- A popup screen will confirm you've been upraded to the Nucleus Platform.
- Select proceed to the Nucleus Platform.
- You'll be asked to complete or edit your email and mobile number details.
- You'll then be sent an email with a link.
- When you receive it, click on the link.
- You'll be presented with a username and asked to create a password.
- Create your password.
- You'll be sent a one-time passcode to your mobile phone.
- Enter the one-time passcode into the platform screen.
- You'll then see a message confirming successful sign up and prompting you to move to the login page.
When setting up access to the Nucleus Platform a username will be generated for you which you’ll need to keep a note of.
You’ll be asked to provide your email address and mobile phone number as part of our improved platform security. We’ll send you a one-time password (OTP) by text message to verify your identity. When you login in the future, you’ll only be asked to validate who you are once in a 24-hour period.
To make sure that your James Hay Online account gets upgraded to our Nucleus Platform, it’s important that you’ve logged into it within the last 12 months.
New account numbers
On the new platform you’ll have a new account number which will replace your existing James Hay reference number. After the upgrade we’ll write to you to provide details of this.
New bank accounts for future payments
New bank accounts will be in place for use with the new platform. This means that following the upgrade, future payments to us will need to be paid into these new accounts to avoid any delays. Please use product specific (eg ISA, GIA etc) account numbers as the reference for future payments. Full account details will be provided in the letter we send you after the upgrade. Temporary arrangements will be in place to transfer payments into the new accounts if necessary.
Direct debits: All active direct debit arrangements will be automatically transferred to minimise disruption. Any suspended direct debits will need to be set up again.
Standing orders: Existing standing orders will need to be set up as direct debits for the new platform, using the new bank and account reference details. This also applies to employer contributions. One-off investments should use these new details as well.
Changing income payment dates
Once the upgrade has taken place and you’ve received our ‘Getting started on the Nucleus Platform’ letter, you can select income payment dates from the 1st to the 28th of the month. Changes can be easily accommodated to ensure payments suit you.
Why not go digital?
Get your communications sooner and save paper.
Initially you’ll be set up to receive paper-based communications, but you can opt to receive future communications electronically. We’ll then send you email notifications when new messages are available. You can also use our secure message service to contact us.
Temporary changes to our service
In the days before the upgrade, there’ll be some changes to our standard service – this is to ensure the upgrade is as smooth as possible. We’re keeping these to a minimum, and hope they don't inconvenience you too much.
We’ll write to you to confirm the upgrade date and timeline for each process deadline, but to help you in the meantime, we can confirm that these process restrictions will not start before 24 November 2024.
If you and your adviser wish to perform some or all of the restricted processes in the months between now and the upgrade, we’d appreciate your help in planning your activity accordingly.
Please note that some requests we receive after these dates cannot be accepted and you’ll need to resubmit after the upgrade and onto the new Nucleus Platform.
| Process | Please note | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting ten days before the upgrade | Switch | No switch instructions will be accepted via your online account or a paper form for:
If you’re unsure which investments apply to you, please speak with your financial adviser or contact us. |
| Five days before the upgrade | Buy/sell | No instructions to buy or sell investments will be accepted via your online account or a paper form five business days before the upgrade date. If you experience difficult financial circumstances over this period and need to access your money, please contact us on 03455 212414. |
| Two days before the upgrade | New Direct Debits | All Direct Debit instructions received by two business days before the upgrade will be set up on James Hay systems and be reflected on the new Nucleus Platform following the upgrade. We can’t guarantee that instructions received after this date will be complete before the upgrade. If a payment date is missed, that payment will be collected as an ad hoc contribution on the Nucleus Platform eleven business days after the upgrade. |
| Two days before the upgrade | Income Payments | New income payments can be instructed up to two business days before the upgrade. Regular income payments will be made as usual before the move. After the upgrade, income payments will be made on the payment date itself (rather than 2-3 days earlier). Unless the date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, in which case it should be received on the last business day before. You’ll be able to make changes onto the new Nucleus Platform from the Monday following the upgrade weekend. |
| Two days before the upgrade | Incomes changes | You’ll be able to make a change to your existing income payments up to two business days before the upgrade. After this date, you’ll make the changes onto the new Nucleus Platform from the Monday following the upgrade weekend. |
| During the upgrade weekend | General | James Hay Online will not be available after 5pm on the Friday before the upgrade weekend. The Nucleus Platform will be available from 9am on the Monday following the upgrade weekend. |
| Six days before the upgrade | Download documents | Data on your account activity for the last five years will still be available online after the upgrade. If you want to keep a record of data before that time, please go onto James Hay Online before the upgrade and download it. |
*External investment options available in addition to the choices you have available on our platform. These vary by product and may include investment managers, or the direct purchase of permissible assets not held on our platform.
Letters and Terms and Conditions
Upgrade mailing 2 - changes to our standard service
The documents below are shared for easy reference - please also refer to the changes to our standard service flyer that was enclosed with the letter we sent you.
Use the arrows below to locate the mailing pack for your existing product:
Upgrade mailing 1 and related terms and conditions
The documents below are shared for easy reference. However, please refer to the personalised Key Changes Summary and Charges Schedule that were posted to you.
Use the arrows below to locate the mailing pack for your existing product
Upgrading product literature
| Charges schedule | Key features documents | Permitted investments list |
|---|---|---|
| Modular iPlan | Modular iSIPP Modular ISA Modular GIA Modular Offshore Bond | Modular iSIPP Modular ISA - Updated 10/10/24 Modular GIA - Updated 10/10/24 Modular Offshore Bond |
| Flexi SIPP | Flexi SIPP | Flexi SIPP |
If your SIPP was acquired through a separate pension provider such as Aviva (or other), please refer to the mailing pack labelled ‘James Hay / Life Company’ – advised or non-advised as applies to you.
We always try to write to you using simple language, with communications clearly laid out. However, investment products aren’t the easiest to understand and sometimes the industry uses terminology that can be confusing. We’ve included an explanation of some common terms which you may find helpful.
Frequently asked questions
A small number of existing James Hay products are not upgrading to the new Nucleus Platform. These are:
- Aviva (Friends Life) scheme
- IPS SIPP
- IPS (2008) SIPP
- IPS Pension Builder SIPP
- IPS Family SIPP
- Partnership SIPP
- Phoenix scheme
- Sarum scheme
You won't be able to place any instructions within the restricted trading period. Full details of the deadlines will be available on the 'Temporary changes to our service' page of our Customer upgrade support online hub in advance. We've written to you with some initial information about this and will write again to confirm specific deadline dates soon.
To log into your online account, please follow these steps:
- Visit James Hay Online at jameshay.co.uk/portal.
- Enter your login details (username and password).
- Click “Log In.”
If you’re unsure of your username and password, please call our team on 03455 212414 and we’ll be able to assist.
If you have a James Hay Online account which you’ve used in the last 12 months, then a new account will automatically be set up for you on the new Nucleus Platform. You won’t be able to access the platform until after the upgrade weekend. After the upgrade, you’ll only be able to see your account information on the new Nucleus Platform – the information will no longer be available from James Hay Online.
The first time you log in, you’ll be asked to enter your existing login credentials which will be used to verify your identity. You’ll then need to set up new details. If you don’t have an active James Hay Online account, you can register as a new user.
We're making a multi-million-pound investment in upgrading our service to you. As part of major changes to our systems, your product is moving to our new, improved platform. Find out more on the 'What will be different' tab.
We’ll be writing to you, via post, to ensure you know what to expect at each stage of the upgrade. Read more on the 'Keeping you informed' tab.
If you haven’t accessed your account in over 12 months, you won’t now be able to access it for security reasons.
Please call our team on 03455 212414 for assistance. They’ll take you through the security checks and reinstate your access.
If you have any questions, we always recommend you speak with a professional adviser in the first instance, if you have one. Alternatively, you can contact us.
- send us a secure message via James Hay Online
- email us at ask@nucleusfinancial.com
- call us on 03455 212 414
As we get closer to the upgrade date there are a few changes you’ll want to be aware of and actions you’ll need to take. Read more on the 'Actions you need to take' tab.
We'll do our best to avoid changing the date once we've notified you of it. However if we do need to, we'll write to you again confirming the new expected dates and what it means for the changes to our standard service.
Account numbers for all products upgrading to the new platform will change. After you've upgraded to the new platform, we'll write to you again confirming your new account number.
You'll retain any investment options that you're currently using, although some asset types won't be available for new investments. The current Select and Collect funds will be replaced by a competitively priced and wider range of platform assets, including a large range of UK Exchange Traded Instruments (ETI).
After upgrading to the new Nucleus Platform, updated Terms and Conditions will apply. If you don’t wish to change to our new terms for any reason, you have the option to transfer out. If we’re unable to complete the transfer of your products before they’re upgraded to our new platform, we’ll honour the existing terms and conditions while the transfer is completed.
We no longer apply exit fees if you choose to leave any of our products. Charges for transferring a property do, however, continue to apply.
All products in the scope of this change will be upgraded, including those where a transfer out is in progress. We’ll continue to work to complete the transfer as quickly as possible and we’ll reimburse if you are negatively impacted by any changes in price resulting from the upgrade.
We've shared details when trades will need to be completed ahead of the upgrade - please refer to our 'Changes to standard service' flyer for details. If there's an issue or delay that means the trade may not settle before the upgrade we'll ensure your assets are moved over as if they were settled in time.
We don’t have a date for that yet. We’ll share our plans with you as soon as we can.
As part of the upgrade, you’ll be able to see all transactions from the past five years on the new platform. You won’t be able to see your product history on James Hay Online after the upgrade so we recommend you login and get any information you might need before the upgrade. Don't worry, we can always help with any historic information requests after you've been upgraded.
We have extensive testing and quality assurance checks to carry out and until these processes are completed we can't confirm the exact date that the upgrade will take place. We'll update you soon.
The platform upgrade and new branding are part of our wider Nucleus group strategy to grow our business and improve the online service we offer.
This means you benefit from the combined scale, expertise and technological know-how of all our platform businesses.
All customers included in the upgrade will be set up on the new platform with the paper-based communication option. This preference can be updated on the platform at any time.
All customers pay an annual platform charge which is either a fixed fee, a percentage of assets or a combination of both. You may pay other charges depending on the products you have, the assets you trade in and specific events.
You can find your current charges in your existing James Hay charges schedule.
As a result of the changes, many customers will pay less and some will see an increase. We’ve simplified our pricing, to make it easier to understand the charges you pay, and details are set out in the new charges schedule you received.
If you’d like help to understand your charges, please speak with your adviser if you have one or alternatively get in touch with us and we’ll be happy to assist.
After the upgrade, all correspondence and statements will be sent directly to you. It won't be possible for you to choose for it to be sent to an adviser or other third party. To avoid any issues, please ensure your address details are up to date.
We'll have new bank account numbers for you to make payments to. You'll also be allocated a new product account number which should also be used as the reference for payments.
Details of these will be sent to you after the upgrade. In the meantime, please continue to make payments as normal.
Yes - you'll be able to submit one off crystallisations with us directly using a paper application. Alternatively, your adviser will be able to submit both one off and phased drawdown requests online.
Yes - following the upgrade we'll apply tax relief on eligible pension contributions when these are applied to your account.
In the days before the upgrade of your product, there’ll be some changes to our standard service – this is to ensure the upgrade is as smooth as possible. We’re keeping these to a minimum and hope they don’t inconvenience you too much.
You won't be able to place any instructions within the restricted trading period. Full details of the deadlines will be available on the 'Temporary changes to our service' page of our Customer upgrade support online hub in advance. We've written to you with some initial information about this and will write again to confirm specific deadline dates soon.
We're here to help
If you've further questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.
