September 2020

09Sep

£15bn boost if UK scraps pensions triple-lock, says think tank

An industry think tank has said that replacing the pensions triple lock with “earnings smoothing mechanism” could save up to £15bn ($19.56bn, €16.59bn) from the covid-19 bill. But the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) added that this would reduce average state pension income by 2% from 2021. The triple lock means the state pension increases by the highest of the increase in average earnings, inflation or 2.5%. This comes as rumours continue over the future of the pensions triple-lock, with chancellor...

September 9, 2020
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08Sep

UK. £2.5trn of pension assets at risk from scammers

Up to £2.5 trillion of pension assets are at risk of being lost to scammers, according to a new report. The research from The Police Federation and The People’s Pension concluded that greater powers are needed to help prevent transfers to suspected scam schemes. As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to cause a rise in pension fraud, the research from workplace pension provider The People’s Pension and policing think tank the Police Foundation, found that from 13 pension providers alone,...

September 8, 2020
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07Sep

UK universities and staff face huge jump in pension contributions

UK universities and thousands of their staff face increased annual pension costs totalling billions of pounds under proposals to plug an estimated £18bn deficit in the sector’s main retirement scheme. Read also £15bn boost if UK scraps pensions triple-lock, says think tank The £67bn Universities Superannuation Scheme, the UK’s largest private-sector pension fund, will on Monday lay out a range of options to reduce the burgeoning deficit, which was £3.6bn in 2018. Read also US. The crisis of multiemployer pension...

September 7, 2020
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04Sep

UK. The pensions regulator: imposing joint and several liability for pensions liabilities

Investigations by the Pensions Regulator have dealt immense damage to companies' reputations in the past. What are its moral hazard powers, and how can organisations mitigate the risk of an intervention? Anne-Marie Winton, Partner at Arc Pensions Law LLP, examines the role of the Pensions Regulator in imposing joint and several liability on group companies. Defined benefits (or final salary) pension schemes are often a group’s largest unsecured UK creditor by far, possibly representing hundreds of millions of pounds of...

September 4, 2020
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03Sep

Expert Warns UK Pensions Could Face Massive Dashboard Compliance Costs, Work

Contrary to government claims, UK pension plans might have to pay millions of pounds to prepare data for the pensions dashboard, according to Steve Webb, a former UK pensions minister who is now a partner at investment consultant Lane Clark & Peacock. In an attempt to simplify the complexities of pensions savings for citizens, the UK government and the country’s pensions industry are launching a pensions dashboard. The dashboard is a digital interface that will allow people to view...

September 3, 2020
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August 2020

28Aug

UK. The Department for Work and Pensions publishes consultation on pension climate risk

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has published a consultation, setting out proposals for larger occupational pension schemes and authorised master trusts to publish their climate risk financial disclosures. The consultation, published 26 August 2020, recommends that trustees of large occupational pension schemes must have effective governance, strategy, risk management and accompanying metric targets, to manage climate risk and opportunities in the market from October 2021. The DWP has recommended that trustees calculate the carbon footprint of pension...

August 28, 2020
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27Aug

UK ‘lifeboat’ scheme for company pensions at risk

A former minister has warned that the government’s “lifeboat” scheme for company pensions is at risk from a huge wave of corporate defaults which in extreme circumstances could result in a 10% cut to pensioner incomes. Read also UK. Why we’re largely a nation of ‘no clues’ on pensions The Pension Protection Fund is the “insurance policy” for millions of people in final salary-style company pension schemes, promising to pay out if the employer becomes insolvent. It is funded by...

August 27, 2020
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27Aug

UK. Taking action on climate risk: improving governance and reporting by occupational pension schemes

This consultation seeks views on policy proposals to require trustees of larger occupational pension schemes and authorised schemes to have effective governance, strategy, risk management and accompanying metrics and targets for the assessment and management of climate risks and opportunities. It also invites responses on proposals to disclose these in line with the recommendations of the international industry-led Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). It is proposed that among the activities required would be calculating the ‘carbon footprint’...

August 27, 2020
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26Aug

UK pensioners lose £30m to scammers

Pension savers claim over £30m ($39.4m) has been lost to scams over the past three years, according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and The Pensions Regulator. Pension pots of all sizes have been victims of scams, with reported losses ranging from under £1,000 to as much as £500,000. A total of £30,857,329 has been reportedly lost to pension scammers since 2017, according to complaints filed with Action Fraud. However, the true number of scams is likely to be...

August 26, 2020
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21Aug

UK. How COVID-19 will affect women’s pensions in the long term

It is clear that the pandemic is more than just a health crisis, but an economic one too. Since the lockdown was introduced in March, millions of people have been furloughed or made redundant. And not only is the financial fallout of coronavirus affecting women more severely than men, it will continue to impact their savings for years to come. Prior to the virus, women only saved a third of the amount that men do by the time they...

August 21, 2020
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