Terms and conditions

Subject to you agreeing to these terms, we allow you to use the website free of charge and these terms will regulate your use of the website. Other terms may apply to the provision of any service made available to you via this website or to the secure parts of this website. You should check to see what specific terms apply to any service or secure part of this website that you wish to use.

Nothing on our website shall constitute an offer by us to provide to any person any goods or services.

The information on this website is primarily directed at those persons who are members, prospective members, former members, institutions, employees or directors of USS or USS' advisors.

We may, without any liability to any user, terminate, change or suspend any part of this website including any of its content or features, at any time without notice and in addition we reserve the right to refuse or suspend access to the website or close it, again without any liability to any user. We will not be liable if for any reason our website is unavailable at any time or for any period.

We reserve the right from time to time and without notice to vary these terms and as such we suggest that you regularly revisit this page to ensure that you have seen the latest version of the terms. Your continued use of the website shall be deemed acceptance of any such revised terms.

If you are a member of USS and use My USS, the secure member section of uss.co.uk (also known as the member portal), you will also be subject to the terms and conditions of use for My USS which you will find below. If you are an official contact for an institution and have access to the employer portal, the secure employer section of www.uss.co.uk, you will also be subject to the terms and conditions of use for the employer portal which are also below.

The USS privacy notice  and USS cookie information, also apply to the use of this website.

Commentary and other materials posted on our website are not intended to amount to advice on which reliance should be placed. We therefore disclaim all liability (to the fullest extent permitted by law and subject to the paragraph headed "Liability" below) arising from any reliance placed on such materials by any visitors to our website or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents.

This website, including its design, operation and content is USS proprietary material. All rights are expressly reserved. You may use the material contained on this website in accordance with these terms, including printing hard copies of any page of this website provided you retain all and any copyright and proprietary notices. You may not copy, reproduce, transmit, store, adapt or modify any of the images or content on our website or place hyperlinks to our website without our prior written consent. Any other use of materials on our website is strictly prohibited.

From time to time we may include links on our website which lead to websites operated by other parties. We provide these links because we think they may be of use and interest to you. We have no connection with these websites and can accept no responsibility for their security, content or availability. You should check the terms and conditions and privacy policies of any third party websites.

As noted above, we try to provide general information on our website which we believe will be of use to our members, institutions and advisors. Please be aware that the information, opinion and content contained in this website (including but not limited to our notice board summaries, legislation overviews and other related issues) is general guidance only and does not constitute advice including but not limited to financial/professional advice on which you should rely. In particular, please note that we make no warranties, representations or guarantees, express or implied as to the accuracy of the information, guidance, content or opinion provided on our website. Each individual’s circumstances are different and we would advise that users of the website seek specific advice and contact a financial adviser. If you would like further information about contacting a financial adviser, please visit our guidance and financial advice page.

You must not use the website in any way that causes or is likely to cause the website and/or access to it to be interrupted, damaged or otherwise interfered with. In particular you must use the website for lawful purposes only and not use the website in connection with any fraudulent and/or unlawful activity.

Whilst we make every effort to protect it, we do not guarantee that use of our website will be uninterrupted or error free. We do not guarantee that this website will be secure or free from bugs, viruses or defects of any description.

You are responsible for configuring your information technology, computer programmes and platform to access our website. You should use your own virus protection software.

You must not misuse or allow any other persons to:

• misuse the website by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;

• gain unauthorised access to the website, the server on which the website is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to the website; or

• attack the website via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack.

By breaching the above paragraphs, you will commit a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. USS will report any such breach to the relevant law enforcement authorities and USS will cooperate with those authorities by disclosing your identity. In the event of such a breach, your right to use the website will cease immediately.

If you are using the website as a consumer as defined by the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 the extent of our liability is as follows:

We (which includes USS, its directors, employees or other representatives) will only be liable to any person for losses which are foreseeable as a consequence of us breaching these terms and caused by our own negligence. Nothing in these terms shall affect your statutory rights.

If you are using the website as a non-consumer the extent of our liability is as follows:

We (which includes USS, its directors, employees or other representatives) will not be liable to any person for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with use of our website or any information contained within it. We shall not in any event be liable for business losses of any sort including economic loss or damage to or loss of profits, interest, revenue, anticipated savings, business or goodwill.

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits USS’s liability for death or personal injury arising from its negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by English law.

Nothing in these terms confers on any third party any benefits under the provisions of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999. This does not affect any right or remedy of any person which exists or is available otherwise than pursuant to this Act.

If at any time any provision of these terms is or becomes illegal, invalid or unenforceable that shall not impair the legality, validity or enforceability of any other provision of these terms and such illegal, invalid or unenforceable provision will be severed from the rest to the extent that it does not affect the validity of the remainder.

If you have any queries regarding our website or these terms please contact us or write to us at USS, Royal Liver Building, Liverpool L3 IPY.

These terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. Subject to the provisions set out in the paragraph above, the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim that arises out of or in connection with these terms.

1.1 In these user terms and conditions the following words and phrases shall have the meanings set out below:

"Member" means a member of the scheme (whether an active, deferred or pensioner member) and "members" shall be construed accordingly;

"My USS" means the secure part of the website operated by USS found here, My USS (or such other address as USS may notify members of from time to time) for the purpose of allowing secure access to information and options relating to your retirement benefits from the Scheme also known as the member portal;

"Scheme" means the scheme known as 'Universities Superannuation Scheme' established by a declaration of trust dated 2 December 1974 and now governed by the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme;

"Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme" means the Rules of the Scheme dated 19 November 2015 (as amended from time to time), a copy of which can be obtained at on the Scheme Rules page;

"USS/us/our/we" means Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales with registration number 1167127 and having its registered office at Royal Liver Building, Liverpool, L3 1PY;

"you" means the person who is using My USS, who must be a member and "your" shall be construed accordingly.

2.1 The purpose of My USS is to provide members with online access to details and options in respect of their retirement benefits from the scheme.

2.2 My USS is only for use by members.

2.3 In the event of any inconsistency between the content of these user terms and conditions, My USS and/or the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme (as applicable), the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme shall take precedence, followed by these user terms and conditions and then My USS.

2.4 The information does not take into account your personal circumstances and it is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation to make (or refrain from making) any kind of investment decision. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content. If you are not sure what’s best for you, we strongly recommend that you speak to an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) before making a decision in relation to your investments or any change to them. If you would like further information about contacting a financial adviser, please visit our guidance and financial advice page.

3.1 My USS server uses a digital certificate, which is compatible with most browsers. You have a responsibility to check the digital certificate to ensure that you are accessing the approved website.

3.2 You are responsible for keeping your password and PIN secure at all times and must not write your password or PIN down or disclose them to any third party. You may not allow third parties (including but not limited to Independent Financial Advisors) to access My USS using your username, password and/or PIN or create a My USS account for you.

3.3 You have a responsibility to ensure that you log out after each visit to My USS, particularly if you leave your PC for any length of time and/or share an office or PC with others.

3.4 You must notify USS as soon as you know or suspect that your password or PIN is known by any third party. You will remain responsible for any use of your password or PIN to obtain access to My USS unless USS has received notification from you that your password is known by a third party.

3.5 To ensure that the correct user is only able to reset security credentials, you will be requested on registration to supply answers to “security questions”, You will only be prompted for this information when you need to reset your password, PIN, or if you have forgotten your username.

3.6 USS will never request you to supply security details (passwords or PIN) via emails or over the telephone.

3.7 You must not use a group email address for any part of your registration and security set up.

4.1 My USS is a working system and may be amended or updated by or on behalf of USS from time to time without prior notification to you. Your continued use of My USS after any such changes will signify your consent to such changes.

4.2 SS do not guarantee that My USS, or any content on it, will always be available or be uninterrupted. We may suspend or withdraw or restrict the availability of all or any part of our site for business and operational reasons. We have no liability to you if My USS is unavailable at any time.

4.3 We will not be liable for any technical problems that you suffer as a result of your use of My USS.

4.4 We may disable your account and/or any username, password, PIN or security questions and answers should you fail to comply with these user terms and conditions.

You must not:

5.1.1 Misuse My USS by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;

5.1.2 Gain unauthorised access to My USS, the server on which My USS is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to My USS; you should not try and access other parts of My USS or other users details;

5.1.3 Disassemble any part of My USS or its content or any software used in connection with My USS;

5.1.4 Attack My USS via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack.

5.1.5 By breaching clause 5.1, you will commit a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. We will report any such breach to the relevant law enforcement authorities and will co-operate with those authorities by disclosing your identity. In the event of such a breach, your right to use My USS and any other websites provided by us will cease immediately.

6.1 My USS, including its design, operation and content is proprietary material of the USS or its licensors. All rights are expressly reserved. You may only use My USS for non-commercial use in accordance with these user terms and conditions.

6.2 You may print off the material and/or pages from My USS and may download extracts for your own personal use. Your use of any such printed/downloaded material should comply with these terms.

6.3 You must not modify any materials you have printed/downloaded from My USS in any way.

6.4 If you print off, copy or download any part of My USS in breach of these terms of use, your right to use My USS will immediately cease and you will be required to securely destroy or return to us any copies you have made.

7.1 You may not create or allow any links to My USS homepage to exist on any websites. You may create a link to My USS as a "favourite" on your personal computer for as long as you have access to My USS.

7.2 You must not frame My USS on any other site, nor may you create a link to any part of My USS other than as permitted in clause 7.1.

We do not assume any liability for the content of any website linked to this website nor does it have any control over the contents of such websites. These links are provided for your information only and such links should not be considered as endorsement by USS of those websites. We will not be liable for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of such websites and/or the availability of those websites.

9.1 We reserve the right to suspend or withdraw your access to My USS at any time without notice.

9.2 You agree to cease use of My USS immediately if you cease to be a member.

10.1 Nothing in these terms excludes or limits USS’s liability for death or personal injury arising from its negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by English law.

10.2 To the extent permitted by law, we do not provide, whether express or implied, any representations, warranties and/or guarantees that the website and/or its content is up-to-date, complete, accurate and/or free from errors or omissions. We will not accept any liability for any loss or damage caused by any use of, or reliance on, any information on My USS.

10.3 We will not be liable to any user for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or connection with use of or inability to use My USS or your reliance on any content or materials displayed on My USS.

10.4 You agree to cover any losses, liabilities, costs, damages, expenses and professional fees that the Trustee Company may reasonably incur and/or suffer as a result of your breach of these terms, including (but not limited to):

10.4.1 Any claim by a third party; and/or

10.4.2 Any fines or penalties imposed by any regulatory, advertising or trading body or authority in connection with your breach of these terms.

We may revise these user terms and conditions at any time by amending the relevant page on My USS without notice to you. Every time you wish to use My USS, please check these user terms and conditions to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time.

If any part of these user terms and conditions is found to be void or unenforceable, it will be severed from the rest to the extent that it does not affect the validity of the remainder.

Nothing in these terms confers on any third party any benefits under the provisions of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999. This does not affect any of your other rights.

If you breach these terms and we take no action, we will still be entitled to use our rights and remedies in other situations where you are in breach.

These user terms and conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim that arises out of or in connection with these user terms and conditions.

If you have any queries regarding our website or these terms please contact us or write to us at USS, Royal Liver Building, Liverpool L3 IPY.

1.1 In these Institution terms and conditions, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings set out below:

"Application Form" means the application form signed by the Institution's official contact;

“eForms” means the online forms available within the employer portal;

"Information" means information relating to members (including without limitation information which is contained in or originates from the employer portal);

"Institution/you" means the institution identified in the Application Form;

"Member" means a member of the scheme and "members" shall be construed accordingly;

"Scheme" means the scheme known as 'Universities Superannuation Scheme' established by a declaration of trust dated 2 December 1974 and now governed by the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme;

“Secure file transfer” means the secure file transfer system provided by USS to transmit member data between institutions and USS;

"Service provider" means any service provider who provides pensions administration services to an Institution and which is identified in the Application Form;

"Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme" means the Rules of the Scheme dated 19 November 2015 (as amended from time to time) a copy of which can be obtained on the Scheme Rules page;

"USS/us/our/we" means Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales with registration number 1167127 and having its registered office at Royal Liver Building, Liverpool, L3 1PY;

"User" means a person employed by the Institution or a service provider, who is identified as a "user" in the Application Form and is granted access by USS to the employer portal;

“Employer portal" means the secure part of the website operated by the Trustee Company at uss.co.uk (or such other address as USS may notify the Institution of from time to time) for the purpose of allowing secure access to Information and also known as the “employer portal”; and

“Worktray” means the task worktray accessible to designated users within the employer portal.

1.2 The Institution agrees that it will use the employer portal and otherwise communicate with USS in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in these Institution terms and conditions.

1.3 The employer portal, including its design, operation and content is proprietary material of USS or its licensors. All rights are expressly reserved. The Institution may only use the employer portal for non-commercial use in accordance with these Institution terms and conditions.

1.4 1.4 USS endeavours to ensure that all information on the employer portal is accurate and up to date. If, however the Institution becomes aware of any errors in relation to the information on the employer portal, it shall advise USS immediately. The Information made available by USS on the employer portal may only be used by Institutions to provide estimates, quotations and provisional calculations. If an Institution or member wishes to rely on any Information from the employer portal, the Institution shall contact USS who will confirm if such Information is accurate and up to date otherwise, USS is unable to warrant, guarantee or represent that any such Information is accurate and/or up to date.

1.5 In the event of any inconsistency between the content of these Institution terms and conditions, the employer portal and the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme, the Trust Deed and Rules of the Scheme (as applicable) shall take precedence followed by these Institution terms and conditions and then the employer portal.

By participating in the scheme, the Institution agrees to comply with these Institution terms and conditions and in particular the Institution agrees that:

2.1 It shall not disclose any Information to any third party (other than a user, service provider or the member to whom such information relates), without obtaining the prior written authorisation of the relevant member or as may be required by law;

2.2 It will use the information only to provide members which it employs with indicative quotations and other general information about their pension and benefits, with the Scheme unless confirmation of the accuracy of such information is obtained from USS in accordance with clause 1.4 above;

2.3 It will not use (or attempt to use or permit the use of) the employer portal to access information about any member other than a member which it employs or has been employed by it or any member who is commencing employment with it;

2.4 The employer portal and information will only be used by the Institution for Scheme related matters;

2.5 It will only use the employer portal and information for the purpose of administering members' pensions with the Scheme (which includes permitting copies of the information to be printed) and any misuse (being any activity considered as misuse by USS in its absolute discretion) of the information will result in the Institution's and its users' access to the employer portal being removed or suspended without notice;

2.6 It agrees that it will not use the information for any purpose other than as specified in clauses 2.4 and 2.5 above without obtaining tUSS's prior written consent which may be obtained by contacting USS in writing;

2.7 Information contained within the employer portal (including without limitation the information) will be updated regularly and the content of the employer portal may therefore change at any time; and

2.8 It is aware of and will take all reasonable steps to ensure that member data is treated securely and in line with the USS privacy notice and in line with the Data Sharing Agreement between the Institution and USS.

The Institution agrees that it will only send personal data (as defined in the Data Protection Act 2018) relating to members to USS or using such secure file transfer systems (including but not limited to the Employer portal) as may be approved by USS. If the Institution has any queries in relation to the correct method of sending member data to USS then it will contact USS immediately to confirm this and, in any event, prior to sending such data.

The Institution agrees that it shall maintain a record of each member's decisions and/or elections in respect of its pension in the scheme in accordance with such procedures as USS may notify it of, from time to time.

The Institution warrants, represents and undertakes that it has taken all reasonable steps to ensure all information provided to USS (including without limitation the Information and information relating to members' elections and decisions regarding the scheme and their scheme pensions) is accurate, up to date and complete in all respects.

6.1 The employer portal uses a digital certificate, which is compatible with most browsers. The Institution has a responsibility to check the digital certificate to ensure that it is accessing the approved website.

6.2 The Institution will not allow third parties to access the employer portal on its behalf, except for authorised users.

6.3 The Institution shall not share log in details between users, please contact USS for your own log in details.

6.4 The Institution will advise USS as soon as possible of users who leave the employment of the Institution, or no longer require access to the employer portal, so that access can be removed.

7.1 USS do not guarantee that the employer portal will be secure or free from bugs, viruses or defects of any description.

7.2 The Institution is responsible for configuring information technology, computer programmes and platform to access the employer portal. The Institution should use their own virus protection software.

7.3 The Institution will ensure that its users and any other persons within or connected to it do not:

7.3.1 Misuse the employer portal by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful;

7.3.2 Gain unauthorised access to the employer portal, the server on which the employer portal is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to the employer portal; or

7.3.3 Attack the employer portal via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack.

7.4 By breaching clause 7.3 above, a user will commit a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. The Trustee Company will report any such breach to the relevant law enforcement authorities and the Trustee Company will co-operate with those authorities by disclosing the user's identity. In the event of such a breach, the Institution's right to use the employer portal will cease immediately.

8.1 The Institution may not create or allow any links to the employer portal’s homepage to exist on its systems to any websites whether operated by the Institution or a third party. The Institution may permit users to create a link to the employer portal as a "favourite" on its systems as long as such users have access to the employer portal.

8.2 The Institution must ensure that its users do not frame the employer portal on any other site or create any links to any part of the employer portal other than as permitted in clause 8.1.

9.1 Nothing in these terms excludes or limits USS’s liability for death or personal injury arising from its negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by English law.

To the extent permitted by law, USS do not provide, whether express or implied, any representations, warranties and/or guarantees that the employer portal and/or its content is up-to-date, complete, accurate and/or free from errors or omissions. We will not accept any liability for any loss or damage caused by any use of, or reliance on, any information on the employer portal

USS will not be liable to any user for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or connection with use of or inability to use of the employer portal or your reliance on any content or materials displayed on the employer portal.

The Institution agree to cover any losses, liabilities, costs, damages, expenses and professional fees that USS may reasonably incur and/or suffer as a result of your breach of these terms, including (but not limited to):

Any claim by a third party; and/or
Any fines or penalties imposed by any regulatory, advertising or trading body or authority in connection with your breach of these terms.

USS reserves the right to suspend or withdraw an Institution's access to the employer portal at any time without notice.

USS may revise these Institution terms and conditions at any time by amending the relevant page on the employer portal without notice. Every time the Institution uses the employer portal, please check these Institution terms and conditions to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time.

If any part of these Institutions terms and conditions is found to be void or unenforceable, it will be severed from the rest to the extent that it does not affect the validity of the remainder.

Termination or expiry of these Institution terms and conditions however caused, shall be without prejudice to any obligations or rights of either of the parties which may have accrued before termination or expiry and shall not affect any provision of these Institution terms and conditions which is expressly or by implication intended to come into effect on, or to continue in effect after, such termination or expiry including clauses 1.3, 2, 5, 9, 13 and 14.

These Institution terms and conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of in connection with them is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. The courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim that arises out of or in connection with these Institution terms and conditions.

If you have any queries regarding our website or these terms please contact us or write to us at USS, Royal Liver Building, Liverpool L3 IPY.

Role of the official contact