In January 2023, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) announced the failure of Better Retirement Group (BRG).
BRG is thought to have facilitated many transfers from the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS), often in conjunction with Fiducia Wealth Solutions. This is because Fiducia (which is also 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 against BRG (other complaints were also 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. And, In September last year, the FSCS started investigating BRG for its association to the BSPS scandal.
In January 2023, the FSCS announced the failure of the company. Crucially, this likely happened as the FSCS has acknowledged that at least one valid mis-selling claim has been made against BRG, with the business unable to meet the costs of the claim(s).
What happened in the British Steel pension mis-selling scandal
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 (BRG) is one of the companies found guilty of British Steel pension mis-selling. It may also be guilty of mis-selling other pensions.
Will clients of Better Retirement Group be compensated for pension mis-selling?
The fact that BRG has failed means that claims made against the business are likely to be valid, and that the company is guilty of 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 FSCS which 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.
We can help you make a successful claim to the FSCS. And, because we know what to look for when investigating a case, we can often substantially increase a claim’s value. Our solicitors have even won cases where victims had been told that there was little to no chance of compensation.
