Latest Columns
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Tilley: Rebooting the FOS makes sense
I’ve written before about the lack of coherence in the UK’s pension complaints landscape and it remains a source of real frustration for those of us working in the sector.
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Lisa Webster: Pension age uncertainty lingers on
We’ve known for many years that normal minimum pension age, NMPA it's known, is going up.
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Tilley: Are we asking too much of pension savers?
Working in UK pensions, I’ve always accepted that the system evolves. Fiscal pressures change, demographics shift, and governments recalibrate policy objectives. But even allowing for that, the pace and volume of legislative change in the pensions space over the last few years feels unprecedented, and in my view increasingly problematic.
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Lisa Webster: Beware IHT and pensions double taxation
One of the most disliked aspects of bringing pensions into the estate for inheritance tax (IHT) purposes from 6 April 2027 is the double taxation that will occur when the member dies on or after their 75th birthday.
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Lisa Webster: Should tax-free cash always be taken?
Since the Lifetime Allowance was abolished and replaced with the Lump Sum Allowance (LSA) and lump sum and death benefit allowance (LSDBA), we have seen an increase in SIPP members who want to take drawdown only – foregoing the right to take the associated pension commencement lump sum (PCLS).
Popular News
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Government to increase SSAS scam protections
The Government has issued draft regulations to address concerns about scam risks for members of small self-administered schemes (SSAS).
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Transact adds new trust to help with IHT pension tax
Transact has unveiled the new Flexible Reversionary Trust (FRT) which it says will help advisers prepare for the April 2027 IHT changes when unused pension funds will be subject to IHT.
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James Jones-Tinsley: The pension challenges ahead
On 19 May, the Pensions Commission published its Interim Report on the state of retirement saving in the UK.
SIPP provider Curtis Banks has received the go ahead from the FCA to complete its acquisition of rival Talbot and Muir.
The FSCS is working through nearly 1,000 potential claims against SIPP operator Guinness Mahon which collapsed in February.
A convicted criminal accountant who defrauded a pension scheme of £292,000 has been ordered to repay the money.
The DWP is set to "nudge" more DC pension savers to get guidance from Pension Wise - the government consumer help service - when they near taking pension benefits.
Wealth management and financial advice trade body PIMFA has called on the Government to tighten the rules on the promotion of unregulated financial promotions.
PIMFA called for the approval of unauthorised financial promotions to become a regulated activity in its response to the Treasury’s consultation on the approval of financial promotions.
The trade body has previously raised concerns about the issue and its impact on the industry and consumers alike.
It said that by making the approval of financial promotions a regulated activity, the Government would be empowering the regulator and enabling it to take enforcement action on firms that approved unsuitable investments without the necessary expertise or due diligence.
In its response PIMFA also said that it would encourage firms to consider their own practices, potentially addressing the trade body’s concerns about the standard of regulatory supervision as well as the capacity of the regulator.
It said the issue is particularly salient in the current era of ultra-low interest rates and financial anxiety many are suffering due to the pandemic, as a proportion of consumers will be attracted by investments that purport to offer returns far in excess of the rest of the market.
Consumers are told such investments are low risk, while offering high returns. The products are also not always marketed to sophisticated or high-net-worth investors and are often marketed to those on lower incomes or inexperienced savers.
Simon Harrington, senior policy adviser at PIMFA, said: “Given the potential for harm for consumers, and the cost that then falls onto firms in funding the FSCS, we believe that it is right that a gateway is introduced for the approval of financial promotions.
“However, as a result of the experience of many of PIMFA’s member firms of being regulated, we retain very little confidence that the level of regulatory oversight required in supervising the authorisation of financial promotions will be sufficient to prevent a reproduction of the current regime which, as the Treasury quite rightly notes is not sufficient and conducive to consumer harm.’
“Making the approval of financial promotions a regulated activity would mean the FCA could take enforcement action against those firms that approve unsuitable investments without having the necessary expertise to do so.
"This will improve the market; reduce consumer harm and ultimately reduce calls on the Compensation Scheme where rising levies over the last five years have become unsustainable for PIMFA members. This is an easy win for all parties involved and we are urging them to grasp this opportunity.”
The FCA has today publicly censured Aviva plc for making a stock market announcement that had the potential to mislead retail investors.