Liquidated British Steel firm costs FSCS £370,000 so far
The advice firm at the heart of the British Steel saga, Active Wealth UK, has cost the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) some £370,000 so far, with more claims currently being processed....
View ArticleDarren Philp: Why Brexit-fuelled AE reversal would be a ‘monumental’ mistake
It was quite comforting, in a funny sort of way, coming back from six months gardening leave to see some of the same old debates and questions still raging in political spheres about auto-enrolment...
View ArticleDP Pensions launches single investment SIPP
Provider DP Pensions has launched the Premier Trust Single Investment SIPP in response to the growing number of advisers using them for clients. The self-invested personal pension (SIPP) provider said...
View ArticleLib Dems seek £40k cap on tax-free pension lump sums
The Liberal Democrat party has passed a motion pledging to cap tax-free lump sums under pension freedom at £40,000 if elected into government. Delegates at the party’s annual autumn conference...
View ArticleTPAS reports 9% drop in enquiries in final year
The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) helped 187,000 people in 2017/18, a 9% fall on the previous year despite setting up special helplines for specific scheme members. In its annual review for the...
View ArticlePaul Darvil: SIPP and SSAS death benefits can be confusing – it’s an age thing
When a pension scheme member dies, HM Revenue & Customs guidance explains how the remaining pension benefits can be paid out. Here we focus on the options available on the death of a member of a...
View ArticleFCA contacts 68 firms in DB transfer probe; Thousands to go – FOI
A freedom of information (FOI) request by Professional Adviser has revealed the number of firms contacted as part of the regulator’s probe into defined benefit (DB) pension transfers as well as the...
View ArticlePensions industry heavyweights lead ‘mid-life MOT’ development
A handful of industry heavyweights have begun trialling a so-called ‘mid-life MOT’, with positive initial results reported by all those involved. Case studies taken from the ‘mid-life MOT’ trials of...
View ArticleTom Hibbard: The pensions dashboard – a new hope
There has been much commentary and speculation regarding the future of the pensions dashboard in the UK, following significant reports a few weeks ago that the government was considering withdrawing...
View ArticleLife expectancy improvements grind to a halt – ONS
Life expectancy in the UK saw no improvement between 2015 and 2017 as the number of people aged over 90 hit a record high, latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) data reveals. According to data...
View ArticleGeorge Houston: That’s just too good to be true, surely?
I am really encouraged with the increasing noise and publicity surrounding scams. It can only help to get this into clients’ consciousness. All too often we, as a profession, have assumed a level of...
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Fiona Tait: Pensions and the ‘quickie’ divorce
Divorce is rarely an enjoyable experience, and it doesn’t help that it can take a long time to finalise agreements. The government is planning to address this by introducing a “no fault” option and...
View ArticleCorbyn pledges to protect triple lock in Labour conference speech
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has committed to protecting the state pension triple lock, in a speech given at the party’s conference in Liverpool. Corbyn (pictured) said he wanted to appeal to the older...
View ArticlePension bosses banned after abusing members’ funds
Four pension trustee firm directors have been banned from running companies for a total of 34 years following an investigation by the Insolvency Service which revealed significant mismanagement of...
View ArticleGareth James: MPAA – the two decade pension contribution diet
The need for personal responsibility has been a theme running through government policy relating to individual finances, and in particular, pensions, since George Osborne became Chancellor in 2010....
View ArticleAdrian Boulding: Asset manager charges block pension cost clarity
On 5 September the Work and Pensions Committee (WPC) held a highly-focused debate on the challenges of extracting increased charges transparency from asset management firms with a view to establishing...
View ArticleGovt and industry to discuss savers picking own pension provider
Proposals to let employees choose where their company pensions are held will reportedly be discussed by the government and representatives from major pension providers. According to the Daily...
View ArticleEsther McVey: Dashboard will ‘build on’ DWP’s state pension tool
Esther McVey has reiterated the government’s support for an industry-led pensions dashboard as she praised the success of auto-enrolment (AE). The secretary of state for work and pensions promised...
View ArticleRP case studies: Using SIPP consolidation to bring pension freedom
A question we are sometimes asked is why does someone need a self-invested personal pension (SIPP), the most obvious answer these days is usually to purchase a commercial property, but actually most of...
View ArticleCanada Life renames Retirement Advantage products to reflect brand
Canada Life has changed the brand name for the entire range of Retirement Advantage products to Canada Life in order to bring them into line with the rest of the business. Canada Life acquired...
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