Scammers are out in force again, trying to part us from our pension savings. One in six pension holders in the UK have been contacted by a company – other than their pension provider – to discuss making changes or transferring their pension, according to the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA).
They report that with the recent failure of the construction giant Carillion, scammers have been seeking to exploit defined benefit pension scheme members’ fears about the future of their pensions. The PLSA said that scheme members would be covered by the Pension Protection Fund which has the financial strength and experience needed to handle this type of situation on their behalf.
Just say ‘no’
The Pensions Regulator says that unsolicited phone calls, texts or emails about your pension are nearly always scams. Scammers will often claim they’re from Pension Wise or other government-backed bodies, but these organisations would never phone or text to offer a pension review.
You can check out the latest scams doing the rounds by visiting the Financial Conduct Authority’s Scamsmart website at www.fca.org.uk/scamsmart.