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Oakwood Solicitors Ltd and its in-house team of Financial Litigation experts present you with the Ultimate Guide to Mis-sold Pensions. Every question you had about pension litigation but were afraid to ask is answered below in digestible chunks that break down ‘legalese’.
If you do have any other questions, please feel free to contact us via our live chat icon at the bottom lefthand corner of the screen.
The Social Security Act 1985 introduced revaluation to preserved benefits in excess of Guaranteed Minimum Pension (GMP) earned after the 1st of January 1985 – rules which came into force for leavers on or after the 1st January 1986.
The Financial Services Act introduced personal pension schemes and allowed employees to choose a pension scheme of their liking. This meant that employees were no longer forced into joining their work-based scheme.
Personal Pension Plans allowed individuals and employees to contribute to pensions. These replaced retirement annuity plans which were most commonly used to allow an individual to save up a lump sum of money for retirement. Part of this could be taken as a tax-free lump sum and the other part could be used towards buying annuity.
The UK Finance Act was introduced, meaning that employers could only provide pensions for employees through a tax-approved pension scheme on the first £60,000 of their earnings. The smae limit was also applied to personal pension schemes which fell into the tax years 1989-1990.
These changes extended revaluation to cover the whole of the member’s pension, in excess of the GMP. The annual increase applicable was the increase in the Retail Price Index (RPI), capped at 5% – sometimes known as a ‘5% Limited Price Indexation – LPI’.
Robert Maxwell was found to be looting money from the pension fund of the Mirror Group in order to increase the share price of the company.
This meant that pensions became regulated in response to the major fraud cases (like Robert Maxwell). Also compensation schemes were setup. meaning that people were protected and pension benefits could not be reduced without their consent.
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) was set up under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.
This act was introduced to improve the way the pension market was operated, with a particular focus on pension schemes. Also, The Pensions Regulator (TPR) was setup to replace the old regulator (Occupational Pension Board). This was charged with a clear set of objectives – one of the main ones being to protect members’ benefits.
This was introduced to bring about the principal change that going forward all workers would be automatically enrolled into the workplace’s pension plan. Meaning that an individual has the ability to opt-out of an occupational pension plan of their employer, rather than opt-in.
The Pensions act 2011 brought about 3 major changes:
This act meant that individuals could have more flexibility regarding where their pension was invested. Further meaning that anyone over the age of 55 could take a lump sum and they pay no tax for the first 25%. this gave people the ability to a pension provider of their choosing.
The British Steel Pension Scheme saw thousands of people transfer out of the pension. Hundreds ended up in poor investments and the FCA warned that the damage from such bad practice could be £20bn within 5 years.
The Government released a call calling ban regarding unsolicited calls about pensions. This meant that it is illegal to cold call anyone regarding their pension. Therefore, if you have received a call from a company that you have never spoken to before – even if they are calling you about a legitimate product, they are breaking the law. Companies that break these rules can face fines of up to £500,000.
The FSCS increases the payout cap for mis-sold pensions from £50,000 to £80,000. This applies to firms that have been declared in default after the 1st April 2019. Any firms declared in default prior to this date will still be held to the current limit of £50,000.
Private pensions schemes allow you or your employer to save your money for later on in your life. For this are two main types of pension:
This is where you have a pot of money and the outcome is based on how much money is paid into it. These are typically either personal or stakeholder pension schemes – sometimes referred to as ‘money purchase schemes’.
Defined Contribution Pensions work by taking the money paid in by yourself or your employer and investing these into alternative investments. The most common method is by investing in shares and this is done by the pension provider. Because your money is invested in shares, the total value of your pension savings can go up or down depending on the market they are invested into.
Some pension providers will move money into less-risky investments as you move closer to retirement age.
Note:
Make sure your pension provider informs you of the risks of investing your pension into things like shares. If you have been pressurised or uninformed of the risks, you have not been correctly advised and may be able to make a claim.
Advantages and Considerations
One of the main benefits of a Defined Contribution Pension is that it allows you to claim around 25% of your total pension tax-free. You will find that the pension provider will usually take a small fee of this.
Your total pension pot will depend on several things such as the amount paid in, the state of the investments (up or down if investing in stocks), and how the money will be taken by yourself (lump sum or smaller payments).
This is typically based on your salary and is often associated with workplace pensions. It also takes into consideration how long you have worked with your employer. These can sometimes be referred to as final salary or career average pension schemes.
Advantages and Considerations
Just like defined contributions, you can normally claim 25% of your pension tax-free and can claim the rest as regular payments. How much you ultimately end up with depends on the rules of the pension scheme, not on investments or how much you paid into it.
Occupational pension schemes are typically set up by employers for their staff. There are two main types of occupational pension schemes – these are Final Salary schemes and Money Purchase schemes.
Sometimes called Defined Benefit schemes, this is where your pension is automatically linked to your salary. This means that as your salary rises, so does your pension pot. Typically how much you accrue for retirement depends on your pay at the point of retirement and the number of years you have been in the scheme.
One key difference from other pension options is that your pension entitlement at the end will not depend on the success or failure of financial products such as stocks or other investment types.
The most common practice for final salary schemes is that it will take a percentage of your income to go towards your pension pot and your employer will pay the remainder. This can be an attractive offering for most people to opt into. However, it’s becoming less common for employers to offer them.
Also known as Defined Contribution Schemes, a money purchase scheme is basically determined by the amount of money you paid in and also how the investments have performed. Normally, like Final Salary Schemes, you will pay a percentage of your wage into the scheme, and also your employer may also contribute.
However, it’s worth noting your employer may not contribute. If your employer has automatically enrolled you in a workplace pension, they will be obligated to make a contribution.
Money Purchase schemes might be seen as a viable option for pension investment, however, the value will depend on the performance of the investment and also whether or not your employer contributes (if you are not eligible for automatic enrollment).
“An Act to make provision relating to pensions and financial planning for retirement and provision relating to entitlement to bereavement payments, and for connected purposes.” – Legislation.gov.uk, 18th November 2004.
Highlights from this act are as follows:
As of 6th April 2015, people of the age of 55 are allowed to access as much of their savings from their defined contributions pensions scheme as they want. This was granted under new pension flexibility rules. This means that pension savings can be transferred to a pension provider of your choosing.
With this, though, comes more opportunity for underhanded companies to take advantage of the increased transfers to what pension-holders believe to be more suitable investments. This makes it all the more important that would-be investors know exactly what the risks of any transfers are, and that they seek the appropriate legal advice.
A Self Investment Personal Pension is designed to allow people greater control over where their pension is invested. A SIPP is often considered as a ‘do-it-yourself’ pension and is often an option for many experienced and sophisticated investors who want a greater degree of flexibility when it comes to where their pension funds get invested.
SIPP investments include a large number of potential investment opportunities, which can be great for experienced investors but mindboggling for newcomers. Such investments include:
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Cash Often chosen as retirement approaches. Though it is lower risk, it is also very likely to have limited to zero gain. Interest rates are key |
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Commercial property Investments in offices, shops, and other commercial properties. Full SIPPs can also invest directly into commercial property, though this is a specialised area |
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Exchange-traded funds (ETF) ETFs trade on the London Stock Exchange or European stock markets. They track index value such as the FTSE 100 or gold prices in a fairly cheap manner |
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Gilts and corporate bonds A bond is a loan to a company in form of a corporate bond or to the government in form of a gilt. This in turn raises their funds, rewarding you with a steady income from the government or company, alongside the initial amount lent returning to you at a predetermined date. |
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Investment trusts A type of investment fund where you buy shares in investment trusts. These are then traded on the stock market like any other company, rather than units. |
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Shares Shares offer a direct stake in a business, meaning that value rises and falls depending on company performance and market conditions. projected business performance can also affect share value depending on the forecast. |
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Unit trusts and Open-Ended Investment Companies (OEICs) The most type of investment fund. Money is pooled with other investors and put into worldwide stock markets. This investment is open-ended, which means there is no restriction on the size of the fund. |
If your investment contributions are likely to be low and you’re not drawn by the greater choice and flexibility offered, a SIPP probably isn’t the right investment for you.
Likewise, gains are great but losses are also to be accounted for. If you are the sort of person who is thoroughly uncomfortable with the thought of an investment taking a massive loss depending on market fluctuation, then this is another big reason for you to avoid.
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Robert Maxwell was the famed owner of such media publications as the Daily Mirror and New York Daily News throughout the 1980s and into the early 1990s.
As his empire grew, Maxwell’s debts also began to balloon after a series of failures, leaving him to push money around his business properties in order to make them appear profitable in the eyes of auditors.
As this ceased to be enough to prop up his perceived good fortunes, he resorted to pillaging money from the pension funds of his own employees at the Mirror Group.
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Things grew increasingly bleak for Maxwell as his businesses teetered on the verge of collapse. Finally, he was reported missing from his private yacht on the 5th of November 1991 and his body was later recovered from the Atlantic Ocean.
As Maxwell’s bankers recalled their loans, the pension fraud was uncovered and his sons were forcefully declared bankrupt in 1992. The tycoon’s firms were finally liquidated and sons Kevin and Ian Maxwell were tried and later acquitted of fraud.
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Philip Green was a former owner of BHS, notable for being the one who eventually went on to sell the business for just £1 in May of 2015, before it was finally declared bankrupt and closed completely by the 28th of August 2016.
Green was not accused of criminal misdeed, but rather of terrible judgement and greed for enabling an enormous pension deficit to amass under his care. He did not pillage from the pension scheme, rather – he ran the company’s capital into the ground, before selling it on without looking to rescue the pension fund’s solvency despite being warned by BHS trustees. |
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The vast majority of pensions will stipulate what age you can start drawing money from them. Usually, this is no earlier than 55 years of age.
At this point (or whenever your pension stipulates), 25% of the amount you’ve saved can be taken as a tax-free lump sum. Once this has been initiated, you then have 6 months to begin drawing the remaining 75%, on which you would ordinarily pay tax on.
Various options for the remainder of your pensionable amount include:
These offers differ between providers. If you are unhappy with the offers presented to you, you may wish to transfer your pot to another pension provider.
State pensions are not automatically received – they must be claimed. As you approach pensionable age, you should be informed of this by post. If you haven’t heard anything two months before you are due to retire it is best to enquire.
Therefore, a deferred pension is simply a pension that has not yet been drawn at the designated age. Deferral could increase your overall payment when you do decide to retire, but this amount may be taxed.
You can transfer a pension for a number of reasons, and the reasons for doing so are usually personal. You may wish to do so if:
You may wish to seek advice from the Money Advice Service or the Pensions Advice Service, or consult an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA), whose services usually cost money. Seeking good quality advice is the key, and it is inadvisable to do so without being 100% certain you are making an informed decision.
The Pension Tracing Service contains a list of all workplace pension schemes, and the Pensions Advisory Service is the best port of call for personal pension tracing enquiries.
It is recommended that you seek a Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approved financial advisor before making any decisions regarding your pension. they will ask you about your personal circumstances, goals, and any risk-aversion you may have.
Preparedness is the key to getting the most out of such advice, so make sure to have as much information as possible before you take a consultation. Such questions can be found here on the FCA website.
Consider seeking advide if you wish to:
By law, you must seek regulated financial advice if you:
It is also advisable to seek advice if you wish to do either of the above and your pension is worth less than £30,000.
An annuity is a retirement income product purchased with some or all of your pension fund that pays a regular retirement income either for life or a defined period, depending on the package. You will likely see these packages offered by insurance companies:
Using pension money to buy an annuity product entitles you to claim up 25% of it as tax-free cash. You can’t change your mind once you purchase an annuity, so seeking advice is strongly advised before doing so.
A salary sacrifice is a way of saving on tax and National Insurance payments whilst making pension contributions. This is offered by some employers and involves giving up an amount of your income for your employer to pay into your pension alongside their contribution.
This means that you’re earning less, so you and your employer pay lower National Insurance Contributions (NICs). Some workplaces even offer to pay this into your pension, though it is not compulsory. There are some disadvantages to this, however:
Note also that salary sacrifice cannot be chosen if your deducted income would fall below that of the minimum wage.
Can you withdraw a pension early?
Withdrawing money from your pension below the age of 55 will almost guarantee you an enormous tax bill, possibly costing you all of your gathered savings.
Be aware of third-party companies offering such services online under the guise of ‘pension unlocking’ or ‘pension release’. Some even offer to sell your pension, which cannot be done, whereas others might offer pension loans.
Avoid such temptations, as it is almost certain that such companies are not FCA approved and such unregulated advice exempts you from being able to complain in the event of mis-sold advice. It may not be illegal to withdraw money from a pension below the age of 55, but it is not advisable unless you are covered by some very specific criteria:
A pension release company is totally unnecessary in the above two cases, as your own pension provider can make all arrangements for you.
It is possible to withdraw from your pension from the age of 55 even if you haven’t retired, though 75% of it will be taxed at your normal rate and it will obviously affect what you have left when you do eventually retire. As always, advice should be sought.
An SSAS, or Self-administered pension scheme, is an employer-sponsored defined contribution workplace pension. It can give the employer extra investment flexibility. They are usually set up to provide benefits upon retirement to company directors and key senior staff.
This can also extend to all employees if the firm so chooses, plus their family members who may not even work for the employer. An SSAS is run by trustees, usually those who are members of the scheme themselves. Contributions can be made by the member and/or the employer, with tax relief given to each provided certain conditions are met.
SSAS pensions can allow for investment where normal schemes can’t, such as buying trading premises to lease back to a company with the pension capital. certain conditions may also allow lending back to the company itself and buying company shares.
As with other schemes in this list, SSAS pensions are usually drawn from or after the holder reaches the age of 55.
Most private pension options allow for a beneficiary to inherit a pension upon your death, regardless of their relationship to you. A pension provider must be kept up to date with such details. Here are some examples of pensions that have pass-down effects:
Having a tax-free lump sum in your account automatically becomes part of your estate if you pass away and it remains in your bank account. This means that a beneficiary may need to pay inheritance tax on it when your affairs are settled.
It is always best to contact your pension provider to confirm what you are eligible to do when you consider making transfers of your savings.
Transferring a pension fund directly into an ISA is generally not allowed. Defined contribution (DC) pension schemes may enable you to withdraw funds once you hit age 55 and then put them into another product like an ISA.
It can be achieved with a defined benefit (DB) pension, but it is a lot more complicated without expert help. It is also worth bearing in mind the effect of incurring tax fines as a result of emptying a pension pot to move it into something else.
One of the main things to remember with mis-sold pensions is that it is not about the money you have lost – it is about the circumstances in which you were advised to invest.
For example, if you were not provided with the correct advice, you were not clearly explained the risks or were not provided with sufficient information, then you may have been mis-sold because you could have ended up with a product that you did not intend to commit to from the start.
SIPP providers have a duty of care to make sure that you know exactly what product you have chosen, including the details of risks and circumstances. If this has not been fully explained to you, it’s likely you can make a claim.
Everyday example
Imagine you are buying a mobile phone for the specific purpose of being able to take photos. You speak to the store assistant and tell them you are planning to take photos on the phone. You are then recommended a phone and as a result of that, you purchase the phone.
After a few days of getting your new phone set up, you are ready to start taking photos. After some time, you realise that the phone you bought does not have a camera. Whilst the phone works perfectly well, it’s not fit for your needs – you have been mis-sold the phone. The same logic applies to the purchase of a financial product.
You may have been mis-sold if:
This depends on what conditions the company has been caught breaking the regulations. In many severe cases, companies caught mis-selling pensions have entered liquidation fairly quickly afterward. Here are some examples of companies that have defaulted:
Pension scammers will typically try to persuade you to cash your pension in. This can be done via a lump sum or a whole amount. They will then try to get you to hand the money to them to invest.
Common signs that you might be speaking to a pension scammer
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They claim to know of tax loopholes and workarounds
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They claim they can unlock a pension before the age of 55
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Remember:
If you are asked to take money out of your pension savings early, it might result in high tax charges of over 50% of the money you originally invested. This will also incur additional charges which are around on average 20-30% for entering the agreement in the first place. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
If you believe that you have transferred your pension into a pension scam, in most cases it’s often too late. However, acting quickly can sometimes help rectify the situation. It’s possible if you get in touch with your pension provider straight away they might not have made the transfer and you might be able to stop it going through.
There are several methods of reporting pension scams. However, the main methods are:
The FCA regulates the sale of mainstream investments – the stocks, shares, and funds that you may normally choose to invest in via your SIPP. However, there are a host of unregulated investments that investors have been advised into investing their funds. Some commonly known examples of high-risk investments are:
These investments are not suitable for the vast majority of investors. They are high risk, speculative, and can be extremely illiquid – in other words, you can’t sell them on easily.
With any consideration regarding your pension, it’s vital that you start by seeking the correct financial advice. Some top tips for choosing the right advisor are:
The Financial Ombudsman Service was set up to help disputes between consumers and businesses offering financial products.
The main objective of the Financial Ombudsman is to resolve disputes impartially and fairly. They also work in partnership with The Pension Ombudsman, which can help if you have a dispute against a pension scheme or decision made by the Pension Protection Fund or the Financial Assistance Scheme.
The Pension Protection Fund protects your defined benefit pension if an employer becomes insolvent. They also provide protection in the event that your pension cannot be recuperated, or your scheme has lost funds due to an offense involving dishonesty.
Founded as part of the Pensions Act in 2004, the most recent records show they have over 249,000 members.
The FSCS was established to protect customers who have purchased financial products from companies that have failed. If a company has defaulted and is unable to pay claims against it, the FSCS will help with your claim.
In addition to pensions, they can also help with claims concerning banks, mortgages, insurance firms, financial advisors, investments, and payment protection insurance (PPI).
With specific reference to pensions, the FSCS can protect pensions offered by UK-regulated providers under the condition that they have qualified as ‘contracts of long-term insurance’. One example of this might be if you were to take out an annuity product – where you can exchange the amount in your pension pot for a regular income.
The FSCS clearly states that they do not protect Occupational Pension Schemes should they fail. However, it is possible that these may be protected by the Pension Protection Fund.
The time in which the company was declared default will determine the compensation amount you can claim. Also, the amount which can be claimed back will also be determined by several factors (see below for information).
1st January 2010 – 2nd July 2015
3rd July 2015 – 31st March 2019
After 1st April 2019
The grounds on whether you can make a claim for a mis-sold pension against a previous provider will determine whether or not they breach the guidelines of financial mis-selling.
If you are unsure, take a look at the section about ‘How do I know I have been mis-sold a SIPP?‘. Remember – it’s not about the amount you have lost, but whether the provider is at fault for mis-selling.
The main routes for making a claim are either to use the FSCS or a solicitor.
Using a solicitor
Pensions can be extremely complex. In order to make a claim for a mis-sold pension, you have to be able to identify the correct legal issue. Once this has been identified you then have to articulate your case using the correct legal frameworks.
Many mis-selling victims who have legitimate claims attempt to present their case themselves. Where the majority of these claims unfortunately fail is that they do not use the correct legal or regulatory frameworks. This can be as simple as a technicality not being articulated correctly, or because key grounds have not been particularised.
Choosing a solicitor who knows the legal and regulatory processes inside-out will mean that your claim will be processed as fast as it possibly can.
Again, if it’s something you are considering doing yourself (as opposed to appointing a solicitor), you might need to be prepared to put in a significant amount of time preparing all of the necessary documentation.
‘No-win, no-fee’ means that you will not have to pay anything in the unfortunate scenario that your claim is not successful. Also, because the solicitor you choose will most likely receive their payment for the work they have put in when the claim is successfully processed, it will mean that they are working as hard as they possibly can to make sure you get your claim processed as quickly as possible.
It’s worth noting that a well-experienced solicitor will often know the likelihood of success prior to taking on your case. The benefits of this are that if they do not feel they can take on your case, it’s most likely that you do not have a viable reason to claim.
In many cases this is found out reasonably quickly as opposed to attempting to do this yourself, negating the need to spend a lot of time articulating your case only to find out at the end it’s not going to be successful.
If your case does get rejected, it is not the outcome you would be looking for. However, it’s better to find out as soon as possible the probability of your claim rather than find out right at the end after you’ve done all the hard work.
Be aware:
Always ask the solicitor you deal with for a full breakdown of their fees, plus information about any other potentially hidden or unexpected costs throughout the process.
Using the FSCS
One of the biggest advantages of making a claim through the FSCS is that is it completely free. This means that there are no costs to pay at any time, through to the end.
Downsides:
The process of making a claim through the FSCS can be extremely daunting and time-consuming.
To quote the FSCS itself in a 2020 press release:
“Customers also find our process daunting, especially for complex claims. People can be put off by the time taken to gather the required information and evidence from third parties. Customers feel we could provide clearer and fuller explanations of our decisions.
“These frustrations contribute to the use of representatives to bring claims to FSCS – now running at 75% of claims in 2017/18 – despite the fact that our service is free”
Customers have previously found that the grounds upon the claim being rejected or how the claim is handled is not acceptable. In its 2019-2020 annual report, the FSCS states:
“This year we received 695 complaints about how we handled claims, and 1,478 customers asked us to review our decision on their claim.”
There are a number of factors that impact how long a mis-sold pension claim may take to conclude. These include the complexity of the case, whether the claim is against an active adviser, the Financial Ombudsman or the FSCS, and whether liability is admitted or denied.
If liability is admitted, then the claim process is much shorter, and we would expect a claim to be concluded within 3-6 months. Alternatively, if liability is denied and the claim must be issued at court then the claim can take between 12-18 months depending on the availability of the court.
If the claim is being made against the FSCS, we would expect the claim to be concluded within 6 months.
As each case is unique it is difficult to provide a general timeframe for the conclusion of the claim. However, your solicitors should give you an indication of how long your claim is likely to take to conclude during your initial consultation.
These default companies have been investigated by the FSCS for activities specifically relating to mis-sold pensions. If you have invested in a SIPP with these companies and lost money, it’s likely you will be able to make a claim for your pension loss.
Avalon Investment Services was dissolved in August 2018. The FSCS found that Avalon has failed to carry out its due diligence prior to allowing clients to make investments.
It found that a proportion of Avalon clients had been advised by authorised advisors to transfer their existing pension into the Avalon SIPP. The result of the transfer meant that many pensions were placed in high-risk investments.
Beaufort Securities was working with a SIPP provider called Gaudi Regulated Services Limited. It was offering a product called the “Beaufort SIPP“. The company was found to be allegedly involved in securities fraud and money laundering by the US Department of Justice. This even included an illegal sale of a Picasso painting to an undercover FBI agent.
The FCA placed restrictions on the company and the company was declared dissolved in 2018.
Berkeley Burke was founded in 2008 and specialised in providing SIPPs. In 2014, customers complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service, and following this, the company was found to fail on providing the proper level of due diligence when advising customers to invest their pensions.
The investments were found to be of high risk and unsuitable products. Subsequently, the Ombudsman held Burkeley Burke responsible for compensating clients.
Established in 2003, Greyfriars was a company that provided several financial products, including SIPPs. In March 2018, the company went into liquidation following complaints raised by its customers. Unfortunately for its customers, the funds that Greyfriars managed eventually became insolvent. This meant that many were left out of pocket.
Guinness Mahon Trust Corporation Limited was found to be accepting business from unregulated introducers. In addition to this, it was found to be failing in its due diligence for providing suitable recommendations for its clients who had a SIPP. Many of these SIPPs were invested in high-risk and unregulated products.
It was revealed that between the 30th of October 2013 and the 8th of July 2015, customers of Henderson Carter Associates were advised to switch their pension (SIPP) into high-risk investments.
In addition to this, the FCA discovered that it was receiving introductions from Hennessy Jones (its appointed lead generator). Henderson Carter entered liquidation in February 2017.
As the appointed lead generator to Henderson Carter Associates, the FCA had become concerned with the ‘adequacy of pension advice, including, but not limited to its relationship with Hennessy Jones Limited’. Both Hennessey Jones and Henderson Carter are now in liquidation following investigations and fines.
The FCA found that Kingsway Wealth Management had failed to conduct due diligence with regards to advising its customers of suitable investments. Between February 2014 and June 2019, 13 cases were presented to the Financial Ombudsman Service. Of these, 5 cases were found to be concerning unregulated investments.
On the 18th of October 2019, the FCA ordered it to cease all activity except where the FCA had specifically provided consent to continue. On the 12th December 2019, the firm filed for administration.
In 2015, it was revealed by the Financial Ombudsman Service that Liberty SIPP had been allowing the transfer of clients’ pension funds to be transferred into high risk and unsuitable investments.
In June 2020, Pointon York SIPP Solutions Ltd was declared in default due to failing to ensure the suitability of investments for its clients. It invested clients’ pension funds into high risk and unregulated investments.
Many steelworkers had appointed S&M Hughes Limited to transfer out of their British Steel Pension Scheme. In May 2019 the firm was ordered to cease all activity, as it was found that thousands of people were advised to transfer their pension into investments that are now worthless.
If you are unsure about a SIPP product or a company, do your research and be absolutely sure. Remember that you are looking at investing your savings for the future.
If you are serious about investing your pension into a SIPP, make sure you know all of the facts about exactly what you are expecting and be certain that you are 100% confident in the company you are dealing with.
Download PDFMeet the author
Danielle Lightfoot is a Director and our Head of the Financial Litigation Department. Danielle joined the firm as a Paralegal in 2011 and qualified as a solicitor in October 2014. She has acquired ext…
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