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United Kingdom

Deputy Pensions Ombudsman: no trustees’ duty to undertake due diligence on pre-2021 discretionary transfers beyond PSA 1993 and scheme rules (Mr S, CAS-54901-V6R7)

Published on: 02 April 2026

Published by a LexisNexis Pensions expert
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Article summary

Summary

The Deputy Pensions Ombudsman dismissed a complaint about a scheme’s due diligence when making a discretionary transfer to a remote HMRC‑registered arrangement. The Deputy decided the scheme owed no duty—under statute, guidance, general law or any assumed responsibility—to investigate the receiving scheme or to judge whether the transfer served the member’s best interests. Although there were warning signs, the trustees were entitled to proceed with a discretionary transfer once the scheme rules and section 95 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (PSA 1993) had been satisfied, and they were not required to follow The Pensions Regulator’s suggested due‑diligence measures. This decision indicates it is now challenging for members to succeed in disputes concerning pre‑2021 transfers.

What were the facts?

Mr S was a member of the BMW UK Operations Pension Scheme (the Scheme). In 2014, he sought to transfer from the Scheme to the Uniway Systems Retirement Benefit Scheme (the Receiving Scheme). The Scheme included a discretionary transfer provision...

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