The last 2 weeks have seen some significant developments in the fight against Pension Scams. A little under 2 weeks ago the Pensions Regulator (TPR) launched an initiative asking trustees, providers and administrators to pledge to take all possible actions to protect members from pension scams by signing up to a pledge and observing best practise in 6 key areas outlined in their guidance notes.
Secondly, the amendments proposed in the latest draft of the Pensions Schemes Bill to protect pensions transfers were due to be a further significant development in the fight against pension scams. Whilst the amendments themselves weren’t passed, the action government committed to taking is much needed and echoes the Pensions Regulator’s recent pledge that asks trustees to carry out due diligence and engage with members if any risks are identified in the transfer process.
Colin Miller, Head of XPS Member Engagement Group, said, “We welcome the launch of the pledge initiative and the government’s intervention which empowers trustees to commit to a step change in making members aware of scam risks. Pension scams have been a growing concern for some time, particularly at the moment as the wider economic and social consequences of COVID-19 make individuals more vulnerable.
Since 2015 we have been tracking signs of potential scam activity through our Scam Protection Service. In that time we have developed robust processes and technology that has protected over 1,200 ‘red flag’ cases representing over £240m of transfer values.
Our experience has enabled us to confidently sign up to the pledge and we are now currently working through the requirements to determine what it means for an adviser and administrator to self-certify.
“In doing so we can now share our experience and have developed an interactive Scam Protection Checklist for trustees to complete in each of the key areas outlined by TPR that best protects members. Our complimentary checklist can help trustees work through the pledge requirements on a scheme-specific basis and identify actions and processes they need to put in place to protect their own members and self-certify that they meet the pledge for their own scheme.”
TPR Pledge on Pension Scams Checklist from XPS
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