Long-awaited pensions cold-calling ban set to be implemented by June (See: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill/2017-2019/0160/amend/financial_rm_rep_0305.1-7.html)
Government amendment to Financial Guidance and Claims Bill requires Secretary of State to explain to Parliament if ban isn’t in place by then
New requirement for savers to confirm they have received or opted out of ‘appropriate’ guidance before transferring their pension or accessing the pension freedoms for the first time proposed
Tom Selby, senior analyst at AJ Bell, comments:
“After years of prevarication the Government is finally taking decisive action in the war on pension scammers. The ban on cold-calling might not kill all forms of pension fraud stone dead, but it will certainly wound firms attempting to defraud savers of their hard-earned retirement pots. It also sends a clear message to people that if they receive a cold-call about their pension, they should simply hang up the phone.
“However, the reality is scammers are becoming increasingly sophisticated and in the time it has taken policymakers to introduce this ban, tactics have evolved. We have always said a cold-calling ban should be viewed as the beginning of the onslaught on pension scammers, and we urge the Government and regulators to consider further interventions to protect savers.
“Hundreds of millions of pounds has been lost by people using their pensions to invest in unregulated schemes that remain at the heart of many recent scandals. Introducing a permitted investments list for SIPPs so such investments are no longer allowed would be a huge step forward in tackling the scourge of pensions fraud.”
Guidance
“We are pleased the Government has rejected calls to introduce ‘default’ guidance at the point someone wants to access their own money. The amendment put forward will instead strengthen signposting to guidance and require savers to confirm they have received or opted out of guidance before their retirement savings are transferred or released.
“We are supportive of boosting both the take-up and effectiveness of pensions guidance interventions, and will continue to engage with all interested parties to ensure any proposals will work on a practical level.”