Pension mis-selling occurs when people are talked into transferring their pensions into unsuitable pension products which often include unregulated or failed investments. In other cases, people are advised to transfer perfectly good schemes into more expensive, complicated and unsuitable products which they simply don’t require. The motivation behind this advice is often the generation of fees or commission for the advisers.
Victims of serious pension mis-selling are often targeted by unregulated salespeople, sometimes via cold calls. Quite often, they transfer their safe and secure final salary/defined benefit pensions into unsuitable Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs), Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Schemes (QROPS) or other personal pensions.
The result of pension mis-selling can be devastating. Victims might have:
- Lost thousands of pounds from their pensions.
- Lost the guarantees that came with their pensions.
- Made unregulated, unsuitable, and potentially fraudulent investments.
- Discovered that they cannot access their pension.
- Been hit with high fees and charges.
Unfortunately, pension mis-selling is a growing problem, but victims do have the right to claim compensation.
Was your pension mis-sold?
Your pension may have been mis-sold if:
- You transferred your final salary/defined benefit pensions into a SIPP, QROPS or another personal pension.
- You moved your workplace pension to a private scheme, and the provider or adviser has gone out of business.
- The negligence of your financial advisor has made (or could make) you worse off in life.
- You have lost money in your pension or the benefits you thought you had have not materialised
- You have paid excessive fees and/or commissions on the transfer of your pension and potentially on an on-going basis
- You were targeted by an unregulated salesperson (possibly via a cold call).
- You were not told about the risks of transferring your pension, or these were not fully explained to you.
Where does the compensation come from?
There are two key funds available to help victims of SIPP, QROPS or another form of personal pension mis-selling:
- If you were advised to transfer from a workplace pension to an unsuitable scheme and the provider or adviser has since gone out of business, you may have a claim with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
- If you were advised to transfer from a workplace pension to an unsuitable scheme that has not gone out of business, you may be eligible for compensation via the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).
Representing people in England and Wales, at Keller Lenkner UK we help our clients claim back what they are due via both the FSCS and the FOS. Those affected by pension mis-selling could be owed thousands of pounds each.
We are also running a separate claim for victims of military pension mis-selling.
We make the process of claiming back what you are due straightforward. It is free to sign up and only takes a few minutes. We act on a strict no-win, no-fee basis, so, as our client, you will not pay us anything upfront.
If you believe that you have been mis-sold a pension, contact us to find out more about what this involves. If you are not sure if you have a claim, we can find this out for you.
