MPs warn over pension protection for savers

An influential group of MPs has questioned if there is strong enough protection for savers under the new pensions rules. The House of Commons Work and Pensions Committee has warned the Government it must identify any loopholes and weaknesses that could be exposed in the new system by scammers.In a report published this morning it stated: "Pension Wise, is a welcome step, but will not be sufficient in itself to provide adequate protection for savers, particularly as the level of take-up is uncertain, and there is also some uncertainty about whether it will be fully operational from April."The FCA recently outlined further measures to protect savers – thought the committee said this "second line of defence" had come "rather late in the day".{desktop}{/desktop}{mobile}{/mobile}The MPs said in their report: "We are pleased that a requirement will now be placed on providers from April 2015 to ask key questions about savers' circumstances before funds are released."However, the FCA has been too slow to act against poor treatment of pension savers by providers in the past and it will not decide on action in response to its own most recent findings on this until summer 2015."The commitee said a new pensions commission needs to be established and should examine whether the protections for savers that have been put in place so far are adequate.This includes "those aimed at protecting savers from poor treatment by pension providers, as well as from scams and fraud", the MPs said.The report said: "If weaknesses and loopholes are identified, urgent action needs to be taken as early in the new Parliament as possible. In the medium term, we recommend that responsibility for Pension Wise be transferred from the Treasury to DWP, so that the department responsible for pensions can oversee this important service."

MPs warn over pension protection for savers

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