In 2017, many workers were advised to swap their secure “final salary” British Steel pensions into SIPPS, QROPS, and other types of personal pensions. In total, around £2.8 billion was transferred from British Steel’s Pension Scheme (BSPS). However, what people were often not told was that, in transferring their pensions, they would lose the associated benefits. Furthermore, their new pensions often failed to deliver comparable remunerations. This has left them significantly worse off on retirement.
While the financial advisors caught up in this injustice often received commission or other fees for facilitating the pension transfers, affected steelworkers suffered losses of around £82,000 to £489,000. In total, around 50% of the advice given to BSPS members was unsuitable.
Better Retirement Group has ceased trading
BRG is thought to have facilitated at least 85 transfers from the BSPS. Many of these transfers were made in conjunction with Fiducia Wealth Solutions. This is because Fiducia (which is now a failed company) did not have the authority to advise on certain elements of the transfers.
In June 2022, the Financial Ombudsman upheld five complaints made against BRG, and other complaints have been made against the business. Many of these complaints were made in relation to British Steel pension mis-selling. Following this, in September 2022, Better Retirement Group Limited ceased trading and entered into Creditors Voluntary Liquidation.
Will clients of Better Retirement Group be compensated for pension mis-selling?
If you were advised to transfer your pension from the BSPS and have subsequently found yourself worse off, you may have a claim with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS exists to protect consumers when financial firms fail.
If Better Retirement Group (or another UK-regulated adviser) has given bad advice concerning a pension, and the provider or advisor has since gone out of business, the FSCS may pay compensation up to £85,000.
At KP Law, we can help you make a successful claim to the FSCS.
Those affected by BSPS mis-selling should be compensated in full
BSPS mis-selling is something that our Investment Fraud & Mis-Selling experts have been raising awareness of for some time. For example, earlier this year, Technical Director Ben Rees and Associate Alessio Ianiello provided a comprehensive overview of the British Steel pension mis-selling scandal and explored flaws with the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCAs) proposed redress scheme. A government report has also been highly critical of the current plans to compensate those affected by this scandal.
We believe that an effective, comprehensive, and just redress scheme that fully compensates all those impacted is urgently needed.
Can you make a Better Retirement Group or other BSPS mis-selling claim?
If you were advised to transfer your pension into an inappropriate scheme or investment, we can help get your money back.
Simply losing money on a pension doesn’t mean it was mis-sold. But if you transferred your pension into another scheme and your advisor did not give you enough information about the product, the new pension was unsuitable for your needs, or the advisor misled you, you may be a victim of mis-selling.
Claiming with us is straightforward. It is free to sign up, and we act on a no-win, no-fee basis. If you believe that your pension was mis-sold, contact us to find out how we can help. If you are unsure if you have a claim, we can find this out for you.
