The power to settle financial complaints.
The power to settle financial complaints.
Pension arrangements are tax-efficient savings plans designed to provide someone with income in retirement. Some arrangements are also able to provide a tax-free lump sum.
Pensions arrangements fall into three broad categories:
We cannot look at all complaints relating to pension arrangements. There are more details about the pension complaints we can and cannot deal with in the section on our website about our "pensions jurisdiction".
Some pension issues are specific to the type of pension arrangement involved. But there are some more general issues that can affect a number of different pension arrangements.
These are arrangements where an individual investor has a contract with a "product provider" to provide them with a regular income (or annuity) in retirement (and in some cases, a tax-free lump sum). An employer may contribute to this kind of arrangement.
Some personal pension arrangements have restrictions on the contributions that can be made – and on what can be paid out in the form of an income and/or tax-free sum.
We regularly see complaints that:
There are a number of personal pension arrangements that consumers are able to take out in their own name, and we are able to consider most complaints about them.
Where we cannot investigate a complaint, we will tell the consumer about any other organisation that might be able to help.
We will take into account all the relevant circumstances of the case including:
Our technical note on assessing the suitability of investments gives more information on how we evaluate suitability.
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Some employers may organise pension arrangements for the benefit of their employees. We can look at most complaints about:
We are unlikely to be able to look at complaints about other employer-organised arrangements. There are more details about the pension complaints we can and cannot deal with in the section on our website about our "pensions jurisdiction".
We regularly see complaints that:
Group personal pension plans (GPPs) are a collection of individual personal pensions arranged by an employer for individual staff members. The employer may or may not contribute to the pension arrangements.
Because GPPs are made up of a number of individual personal pension plans, most complaints we see about these arrangements are similar to those relating to individual personal pension arrangements.
We also see cases involving GPPs where the consumer complains about advice they have been given collectively as members of a GPP. Sometimes the business complained about says that it gave only general information to all members of the GPP – rather than individual advice to the consumer in question.
When we investigate complaints like this, we take into account both side’s recollections of events – and the evidence provided – to decide whether, on balance, advice was given.
If we decide that advice was given, we then assess the suitability of that advice. There is more information about how we do this in the section of our website on assessing the suitability of investments.
This is a pension arrangement run according to its trust deed and rules – and to obtain certain tax benefits it must also comply with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) requirements.
The scheme can invest in a variety of permitted assets. And it has the ability to borrow money to finance investments such as property purchases.
We see a wide variety of complaints involving SSASs, including complaints that:
When reaching a decision, we take into account the rules that govern these schemes that were in place at the time of the dispute.
We will also take into account the members’ rights and the duties of the trustees. And we assess the general suitability of the advice given. There is more information about how we do this in the section of our website on assessing the suitability of investments.
These pension arrangements generally have few members. They are usually set up by company directors for themselves – and sometimes for their spouse.
The only asset of an executive pension plan is an insurance policy. The pension amounts it can provide on retirement will be affected by any benefits a scheme member has accrued under other pension arrangements – and also whether the scheme member is what is classified as a "controlling director".
We see a wide variety of complaints involving EPPs, including complaints that:
When we reach a decision, we consider all the relevant circumstances and the arguments put forward by the consumer and business.
This includes taking into account the information given to the consumer when the executive pension arrangement was set up – and, where relevant, whether the consumer was likely to be able to meet any regular premium commitments.
Some complaints are about issues that can relate to more than one type of pension arrangement. These include complaints about:
The types of cases we see include complaints that:
When we investigate a case relating to one of these generic pension issues, we consider the specific circumstances of the case and the arguments put forward by both sides. This includes taking into account:
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contact our technical advice desk on 020 7964 1400
This is part of our online technical resource which sets out our general approach to complaints about a wide range of financial products and issues. We would like your feedback on how helpful you found it. Please also use the feedback form below to tell us about anything you think we could clarify or explain better.