Major issues continue to plague the DWP’s pension transfer regulations three years after they were implemented, new Freedom of Information data has revealed.

Pension transfer specialist adviser Philip Pryke has been fined £1.4m by the FCA after his firm advised on 986 transfers, many of them not in the client’s best interests.

Defined benefit pension transfer values fell to their lowest value in a year in October due to uncertainty around the Chancellor’s Budget, according to XPS’ index.

It’s no secret that the FCA has come in for flak over it’s naming and shaming enforcement plans and it’s no surprise it has decided to dilute them as a result. But should it be backing off?

The Financial Conduct Authority has banned Steven Hodgson and Paul Adams of Stockton-on-Tees-based Vintage Investment Services from advising customers on pension transfers and opt-outs.

Pension transfer times have fallen to the lowest level seen since the end of the Coronavirus pandemic in 2021, according to new data.

The FCA has banned four financial advisers, three provisionally, over “reckless” pension transfer advice which has so far cost £13.4m in compensation payments.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has declared BSPS-linked adviser firm Mark Peter Houlbrook (FRN: 498168) in default over pension transfer advice, opening the door to compensation for ex-clients with valid claims.

The number of defined benefit pension transfers in July surged to the highest level since August 2023.