We are hosting two events in Port Talbot for former members of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS). These events will provide information for those who are concerned about advice they received when they transferred out of the scheme.
The sessions will be held on Wednesday 21 August and Thursday 5 September 2019 at Princess Royal Theatre, Civic Centre, Port Talbot. Both sessions will take place at 16.30 until 18.00.
Why we are hosting the BSPS events
In 2017, we published our expectations of firms[1] when advising on pensions transfers. This laid out our concern that consumers receiving pensions advice are at risk of transferring into unsuitable investments.
As a financial regulator, we are concerned that some members who transferred out of the BSPS may have received unsuitable advice. Our role as the Financial Conduct Authority is to regulate firms and financial advisers in the UK and set rules for firms and advisers which they must follow, and are held to account if they don’t.
The Financial Ombudsman Service, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme and the Money and Pensions Service will also be in attendance.
Why you should attend a BSPS event
The event will include:
- Information about how the financial advice process should work.
- The type of information BSPS members should have been asked for by their financial adviser:
- before making a recommendation
- including how advisers should have demonstrated their recommendation
- Guidance on the services financial advisers may continue to provide to members, including regular reviews of investments.
- It will also give you the chance to decide whether to make a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you think you have received unsuitable pension transfer advice. The Financial Ombudsman Service can now award compensation of up to £160,000 for actions before 1 April 2019 and its decisions are legally binding.
Find more information on pension transfers[3].