Pensions Ombudsman meaning

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Original news Mr T (CAS-64304-R5R1)—14 April 2025 Summary The Pensions Ombudsman dismissed a complaint concerning the distribution of death benefits from a pension scheme. It concluded the scheme administrator’s decision was reasonable, neither irrational nor perverse. The complainant was not named in a supposed will—which was invalid as it lacked witnesses—and was the sole beneficiary of the late member’s estate. Before deciding, the administrator carried out extensive enquiries. This outcome serves as a reminder that trustees and administrators of pension schemes should undertake appropriate enquiries when determining death benefit payments. What were the facts? Mr S was a member of the AJ Bell You Invest Self invested Personal Pension Plan (the Scheme). Following his death, he was survived by, among others, Mr T. Mr T had entered into a civil partnership with Mr S...

Original news Mr R (CAS-63400-N0T9) – 21 October 2024. Summary The Deputy Pensions Ombudsman dismissed a grievance concerning a transfer into a pension liberation arrangement. It was considered inappropriate to assess the decision through the lens of hindsight. The 2013 ‘Scorpion’ guidance post-dated the transfer by two years and therefore did not apply anyway. The Scheme undertook suitable, robust and proportionate due diligence consistent with industry practice at the time. This outcome confirms the Pensions Ombudsman does not make retrospective judgements in such circumstances. What were the facts? Mr R held deferred status as a member in the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (the ‘Scheme’)...

FORTHCOMING CHANGE : The Pension Schemes Bill, anticipated to obtain Royal Assent in 2026, among other measures, would confer on the Pensions Ombudsman powers mirroring those of a competent court where pension overpayments must be recouped. As a result, trustees would no longer need to seek County Court orders in these matters, thereby cutting legal spend, easing administrative effort and promoting a swifter, more streamlined recovery for schemes and members, and ensuring a more efficient process overall. For more detail, see LNB News 05/06/2025 42 and Pension Schemes Bill—tracker — Pensions Ombudsman and overpayments. This Practice Note reviews the scope of the Pensions Ombudsman to handle occupational and personal pension complaints and disputes under its adjudication function, covering: who may bring or refer complaints/disputes which complaints/disputes fall within or outside its remit the powers he can exercise when determining matters relevant time limits Collectively, these areas define the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction under its adjudication service for both occupational and personal...

Pensions disputes are frequently intricate and expensive, drawing in multiple participants, throwing up a wide range of questions and, in the end, dealing with very large sums. The result can bear upon the rights and interests of scheme members. Because many schemes have large memberships, and different groups may have competing interests in the outcome, it is generally impractical to join every member. In practice, representative beneficiaries (‘rep bens’) are used as a procedural and pragmatic device to simplify pensions litigation and are a routine element of most claims. That label can mislead, since individuals who are neither within the represented class nor beneficiaries at all may act in that representative role. This Practice Note addresses the making of representation orders in pensions litigation... What is a representative party? The representative rule originated in the procedure of the Court of Chancery before the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873, and is now contained in rules 19.8 and 19.9 of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). Note that those provisions...

ARCHIVED This tracker is archived and is not being updated. It gathers significant pensions judgments from 2022, arranged by topic. The entries are organised by subject, with the topics listed in the Table of Contents on the left-hand side. Construction of scheme rules-revaluation De La Rue plc v De La Rue Pension Trustee Ltd Case information Full name: (1) De La Rue Plc (2) De La Rue Holdings Ltd (3) De La Rue International Ltd v (1) De La Rue Pension Trustee Ltd (2) Mark Crickett Citation: [2022] EWHC 48 (Ch), [2022] All ER (D) 50 (Jan) Court: High Court Judgment date: 14 January 2022 (hearing dates 15–16 December 2021) Representation: Keith Rowley QC and Elizabeth Ovey (instructed by Hogan Lovells International LLP) for the Claimants Henry Day (instructed by Hogan Lovells International LLP) for the First Defendant Andrew Mold QC (instructed by Osborne Clarke LLP) for the Second Defendant ...