Latest Columns
-
Lisa Webster: A calmer Budget? We hope so...
As we head towards our new Downing Street leadership team’s first Budget, the waters seem relatively calm.
-
Lisa Webster: Take the pension first? Think again
With the impending changes to tax treatment of pensions on death, there has been talk around the order of income in retirement being turned on its head.
-
Tilley: Transfer reform welcome but SSAS governance is key
At first glance, DWP’s June 2026 consultation on proposed changes to the 2021 transfer regulations does something the industry has long asked for; it acknowledges that the current regime, while well intended, has created too much friction for some perfectly legitimate pension transfers.
-
Lisa Webster: Good news from DWP for SIPPs but not SSAS
The DWP has just released its long-awaited consultation on the SIPP transfer regulations – and it’s largely encouraging news. As an employee of a reputable SIPP provider the changes are positive. SSAS providers may be less enthusiastic about some of the proposals.
-
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
-
3m UK pension pots worth £18.7bn remain lost
More than 3m UK pension pots remain lost worth a total £18.7bn, according to a Pensions Policy Institute study.
-
Most workers have no retirement plan – survey
Fewer than one in five (18%) employees with a workplace pension have a clear retirement plan, despite more than half (51%) having already given a lot of thought to their financial needs in later life.
-
FCA steps in as SIPP and ISA manager fails
ISA and SIPP manager manager Jarvis Investment Management Limited has entered special administration this week as the firm closes its doors.
-
FSCS launches probe into SIPP advice IFA firm
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has launched probes into two failed investment firms this week - IFA firm Verus Financial Services Ltd and investment provider Aspiro Research and Development LLP.
The guide replaced last year’s update to the original guidance issued in 2016 and followed the FCA’s March policy statement ‘advising on pension transfers.’
PFS chief executive, Keith Richards, said mandated professional advice was a “vital consumer protection component and the updated guide aims to give members clarification around changing advice requirements, as well as ongoing good practice gained from subject matter experts and practitioners from across the sector.”
He added: “Defined benefit pension transfer advice continues to be a key area of focus for the FCA, government and consumer lobbyists, so it is particularly important that firms advising on DB pension transfers ensure their clients fully understand the implications of a proposed transfer before deciding whether to proceed.
“Accordingly, our new guide covers a number of important areas, including risk appetite, the need for holistic advice, qualifications and contingency charging.
“It also features sections on the wider tax issues, cash flow modelling, insistent clients and death benefits.”
Mr Richards said that after a programme of specific supervisory work, the FCA recently concluded that only 47 per cent of the DB to DC transfer advice reviewed could be shown to be
suitable, based on the information in the adviser’s file, which will “inevitably” lead to further scrutiny and supervision.
He continued: “We are particularly alive to the issues surrounding the availability of professional indemnity insurance (PII) for DB transfer advice and have seen evidence of withdrawn cover, or increased cost and excesses, for some advice firms at renewal.
“While this is an overreaction in many instances, it can only be addressed if we establish a clear picture of what good looks like in the pension transfer space and in particular the concerns raised regarding conflicts of interest and insistent client transactions.”
Mr Richards believed it was “critical” that concerns were addressed whether real or perceived, so the profession was not “derailed by the actions of a small number of firms.”