Schemes to issue transfer warning

29 April 2020 Alistair MacDougallCompliance

The Pensions Regulator has issued new guidance to schemes today, requiring them to provide members requesting a transfer out with additional information and warnings. The full guidance can be read here.

In summary, the regulator is calling on scheme trustees to:

highlight the free, impartial pensions guidance from Pension Wise, including phone appointments and online information;
encourage members to take regulated advice to understand their retirement options;
identify increased risks in how a member has decided to access their pension funds and give appropriate warnings of the risks and implications of their chosen option;
send all DB members requesting a cash equivalent transfer value (CETV) a template letter signed by TPR, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Money and Pensions Service, which runs The Pensions Advisory Service;
monitor CETV requests and inform FCA of unusual or concerning patterns, such as spikes or the same adviser across multitude of requests.

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