Consultants Mercer estimate nearly one third of a trillion pounds will be paid out from defined benefit schemes between 2019 and 2021. The record amount is due to large numbers of active and deferred members expected to transfer to another arrangement alongside a rapidly growing buy-in and buy-out market. This year has seen a record […]
New DB transfer rules, Sipp legal cases and CDCs are the big pensions news this year says Michael Klimes
The total value of pension transfers rose slightly from £8.2bn in the second quarter of the year to £8.6bn in the third quarter, the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show. This is down from a high of £10.6bn in the first quarter, however, with experts predicting long-term decline as advisers exit the […]
Legal and General Assurance Society has apologised to a client for making repeated mistakes in the information it gave about the amount of tax free cash he could take. In a ruling from The Financial Ombudsman Service, Mr M complains L&G’s errors resulted in the need for him to return funds and caused him “significant trouble” and […]
The Financial Ombudsman Service has issued several preliminary decisions in favour of three claimants who invested more than £36,000 into the Ethical Forestry scheme through Liberty Sipp. The investments were made after being approached by introducer Avacade, which cold called the clients and discussed moving their pensions with them. The FOS adjudicator finds Liberty Sipp […]
UK stocks have fallen to bargain prices and investors should look closely at them, according to start fund manager Richard Buxton. Last night prime minister Theresa May survived a no-confidence vote as she won the support of 200 Tory MPs against 117 who voted against her. Fund managers have argued that the confidence vote could […]
Boosting the slow rate of growth of the average pot size on advised platforms requires an “extraordinary and sustained” increase in defined benefit transfers, according to The Lang Cat. In its seventh annual platform guide the consultancy says most platforms have an average client pot size ranging from £100,000 to £200,000. It points out the average case […]
Aegon‘s transformation director Elaine Maddison has joined a technology firm specialising in managing cloud-based solutions. She will start work at Brightsolid in January and has around two decades of experience in the financial services industry. Maddison has worked at Aegon since September 2016 where she was initially responsible for the delivery of customer service for […]
The Money Advice Service aims to launch a prototype version of a drawdown comparison tool aimed at non-advised, mainstream customers in spring next year. The guidance body’s senior policy manager Teresa Fritz shared details about the tool that is being designed in collaboration with the Association of British Insurers. Speaking at a Westminster Business Forum […]
The pound dropped to its lowest level since June 2017 today as media reports emerged prime minister Theresa May will delay a parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal. There have been widespread reports the critical vote scheduled for tomorrow is going to be delayed with May scheduled to address MPs later this afternoon. The pound […]
Around 2000 customers could be due compensation after the Financial Services Compensation Scheme declared mini-bond manager Independent Portfolio Managers in default. London-based IPM promoted two mini-bonds which have lost customers millions, according to the lifeboat fund. While the FSCS says it does not yet know how much redress could be due, many customers already have claims against […]
The UK is free to unilaterally revoke the notification of its intention to withdraw from the EU the European Court of Justice has ruled today. An emergency judgment given a day before a critical vote in parliament on prime minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal says the UK can stop Brexit without consulting any other […]