Was Your Pension Mis-Sold? You’re not alone

Pensions are one of the most important parts of planning for your future. And once you arrive at retirement, you become completely dependent on the pension pot you built up during your working life.

It’s a devastating moment if and when you realise your pension might not give you the financial security you were promised. For people in this position, it can feel like the walls are closing in – with little recourse or options to improve their situation.

Thankfully there is a way for those who were given bad advice to get justice and financial redress. Read on for our run-down on challenging a mis-sold pension.

The problem of mis-sold pensions

Pension mis-selling is becoming a serious issue in the UK. Thousands of people across the UK have received poor or inappropriate advice about their pension, leaving them with less money to live on in retirement than expected.

The Financial Ombudsman (FO) has seen a significant increase in complaints related to mis-sold pensions, particularly those involving Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) where people are encouraged to transfer out of stable pension schemes into high-risk or unsuitable alternatives.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has paid out substantial compensation for mis-sold pensions, with £262 million allocated to investment, pension, and financial advice claims in the 2023/24 financial year.

However, while there are redress schemes in place, the problem with pensions is that it can be difficult to spot the problem until it is too late: many people only realise they were misled after their pension pot has already taken a significant hit.

What makes a pension mis-sold?

When making decisions about their pension most people take the advice of pension providers, financial advisers and banks. However, there are a number of instances where the advice that has been pivotal for people deciding how to best provide for their future has been insufficient or inappropriate.

Mis-selling doesn’t always mean the investment was fraudulent – sometimes it just wasn’t right for you.

You may have been mis-sold pensions simply due to poor quality advice which failed to consider your age or income needs. The same goes if an advisor did not make you aware of certain risks. Especially in the case that you were advised to opt out of workplace pensions or transfer pension funds to high-risk SIPP without fully understanding the risks and what you would be losing – such as guaranteed payouts, death benefits, and long-term security – you may well have been mis-sold a pension.

Other signs that a pension may have been mis-sold to you include a lack of transparency about fees or pushing unregulated investments like overseas property schemes or alternative pension investments that don’t offer the same protections as UK-regulated ones.

If you felt pressured into transferring your pension, didn’t receive full disclosure of fees or risks or you now struggle with lower returns or unexpected charges, it’s time to take a closer look at your pension arrangements and possibly consider making a claim for redress.

Make a mis-sold pension claim

If you want help getting redress for a mis-sold pension we can recommend a provider of legal assistance:

Charles Lyndon specialises in helping individuals who’ve been misled or poorly advised about their pensions. Their experienced financial lawyers offer free, no obligation advice to help you understand if you have a valid claim.

If your pension advice didn’t take into account your personal needs or risks, contact Charles Lyndon to see how we can help you claim what you’re owed.

Even if your advisor or provider is no longer operating, you may still be able to claim

Don’t wait until it’s too late. They work on a no win, no fee basis – so there is no financial risk to you.

If you have any thoughts on this topic, or any other consumer issues you would like us to cover, feel free to get in touch with us at support@resolver.co.uk.