Pensions - Articles - Good news for firms who have written DB transfer advice

 Sarah Abraham, Associate Partner and Head of Redress Services at First Actuarial, explains: “Stable redress levels benefit advising firms. When there isn’t enough information on file to calculate redress, it’s sometimes necessary to contact the ceding Defined Benefit scheme to fill the gaps. Many IFAs worry about markets moving against them while they wait for a response, so it’s good news to see redress remaining low again this quarter.”

 First Actuarial monitors typical redress payments arising from a portfolio of notional individuals who transferred out of their pension scheme. With its Redress Tracker, First Actuarial can predict more accurately how a firm’s total Defined Benefit redress liability will change over time.

 Today’s Defined Benefit pension transfer redress payments are at a historic low. In most cases, compensation payments will be a fraction of those of only a few years ago. However, that redress payments remain highly sensitive to the specifics of individual cases – advisers should not assume that redress will always be low.

 Sarah confirms: “We still see substantial redress in certain circumstances, for example where the Defined Contribution pension has performed poorly or the transfer value paid was low. Firms need to bear this in mind when they receive a complaint, and make an informed decision about how to proceed.”