A well known former adviser and trainer of advisers has been handed a nine year disqualification.

The Insolvency Service has banned Keith Popplewell, 58, of the The Pensions Office, with the organisation reporting in an official notice that he “misused his position as an ‘Approved Person’ with the regulatory authority” since at least 16 July 2012.

The body stated that he had been “failing to ensure that The Pensions Office properly advise its clients on the transfer of low-risk personal and occupation pension products into Sipps and failing to advise clients on the high risk unregulated underlying investment, much of which was into ‘Storepod’ investments”.

Among his training background, Mr Popplewell notes in his LinkedIn profile that he has written text books for the CII.

According to The Insolvency Service, The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has received 265 application forms requesting compensation from FSCS in regards to the pensions advice provided to customers by TPO. So far:

• 61 of the claims have been found eligible and paid.
• At least £1,516,670.78 has so far been paid out by the FSCS to clients of TPO.
• 169 claims are currently under assessment.

At least 327 clients of TPO have invested a total of at least £12,000, 147 into Storepods, which are unregulated, high risk investments, the notice recorded.

The official ban notice stated the following:

“TPO also failed to take into account financial circumstances, needs and objectives and attitude to risk when advising clients and failed to ensure that adequate systems, controls, risk analysis and management information were put in place, resulting in TPO:

• Failing to meet with its clients to ensure that their financial circumstances were understood and failing to ensure that the advice it provided was properly explained to clients by unregulated third party introducers.
• Failing to ensure that ‘6 monthly’ client compliance reviews took place, the last of which took place September 2010.
• Providing inadequate risk analysis of pensions advice to customers by unqualified and unregulated staff.
• Failing to provide adequate management information in regards to the quality of business introduced and advice provided to customers.

“A regulatory authority report concluded that Mr Popplewell caused TPO to continue to mis-advise clients after 18 January 2013, when he became aware of a financial regulator alert to investment advisers regarding advice on switching pension monies into unregulated investments, such as Sipps.

“Mr Popplewell’s actions have resulted in the Financial Conduct Authority removing the permissions of TPO to carry out regulated activities in regards to the provision of pensions advice with effect from 29 May 2013.”