22/08/2017
New measures to protect private pension savers from unscrupulous scammers were announced by the government this month on the day that new figures revealed savers were tricked out of almost £5m in the first 5 months of 2017 by false promises of low risk, high return investment opportunities.
It is estimated that £43 million has been unlawfully obtained by scammers since April 2014, with those targeted having lost an average of nearly £15,000. These figures highlight the extent to which private pension savings are being targeted and stolen through elaborate confidence tricks.
The package of measures announced this month were included in a consultation carried out in December 2016. The responses are set out in ‘Pension Scams’, together with the next steps that will be taken to implement the following measures
- a cold calling ban – that will include emails and text messages – in relation to pensions
- a tightening of HM Revenue & Customs rules to stop scammers opening fraudulent pension schemes
- tougher action to prevent the transfer of money from occupational pension schemes into fraudulent schemes
Additionally, the government will ensure that only active companies, which produce regular, up-to-date accounts, can register pension schemes. Limiting transfers of pension pots from one occupational scheme to another will require trustees to check that a scheme receiving their transfers is either
- regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority
- has an active employment link with the individual
- is an authorised master trust