A new Mansion House Accord backed by 17 pension firms aims to help DC pension savers by using private markets to boost potential net returns, while strengthening investment in the UK.

A new consumer survey has found that, on average, one in five people (21%) are clueless about when they will be able to retire.

Cambridge-based pension adviser Berkeley Jacobs Financial Services Limited (FRN 158901), which was fined £175,000 for pension rule breaches in 2004, has been declared in default by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

One in five pension savers (19%) mistrust their financial adviser, according to a new report.

Donald Trump’s tariffs could hit UK pensions, with DC savers warned they may experience a 20% cut in their retirement income.

Pension providers have been urged to find out more about post-retirement spending as new research suggests homeowners’ and renters’ drawdown habits are very different.

Almost half, 48%, of over-50s are unfamiliar with what lifetime annuities are and how they compare to other annuity products.

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) says it expects DB schemes to switch their focus from deficit recovery to ‘endgame planning’.

At-retirement adviser My Pension Expert has secured a £25m refinancing deal through digital lender OakNorth to help fund expansion plans.

In this regular column for Financial Planning Today, Dr Matthew Connell, director of policy at the Personal Finance Society, looks at the FCA's ongoing advice review.

At the end of February, the FCA published the results of its work on ongoing advice – probably the most important assessment of conduct standards in the advice sector for years.

The results were encouraging.

The FCA’s analysis of data provided by 22 of the largest advice firms, covering the previous seven years, showed that:

• In around 83% of cases, ongoing services were delivered to clients.

• In a further 15% of cases, clients either declined or did not respond to the firm’s offer of a review.

• In fewer than 2% the firm had not attempted to conduct a review.

The tone of the report was positive with the FCA emphasising that ongoing advice, ‘can be of great benefit to consumers’ and it introduced the report by saying it had: ‘found that financial advisers are delivering suitability reviews in the vast majority of cases’.

The work is not yet complete but the FCA expects firms to consider whether they can demonstrate they have delivered the services they promised and delivered redress, where warranted.

Firms should also discuss with clients who are paying for an ongoing service but choosing not to use it whether they really want to continue with the service.

The FCA has said it will ‘monitor complaint numbers’ and decide on further action, if needed, later in the year but overall, the FCA findings show a strong commitment to professionalism.

The FCA has also set out examples of good practice, including: clear communications about ongoing service, having effective systems in place to ensure the service was delivered and that recommendations were still suitable with policies in place to stop collecting fees ‘where a client had not engaged for a period of time’.

The PFS will augment the FCA’s guidance with a more detailed guide, shaped by practitioners.

• This column first appeared in Financial Planning Today magazine, Mar-Apr 2025 edition. Matthew's column appears in each issue of the magazine. You can subscribe to the magazine and read comment by leading industry figures by registering for Financial Planning Today website and then checking subscription options in 'My Account.'

Dr Matthew Connell is director of policy and public affairs for the Personal Finance Society.

https://www.thepfs.org/

Professional trustee firms held a market share of 43% in 2024, up from 39% of DB pension schemes in 2023, according to a new report.

Truth be told, it’s been a bit of a tempestuous week on the old financial markets thanks to a certain Mr Trump.

Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the FCA, said the regulator was considering how retail markets can take a more holistic approach to Britons’ finances.

Nearly three million workers are at risk of losing out when paying extra into their workplace pensions by receiving no additional employer contributions but being hit with fees.

There will be a 'Spring Statement silence' on pensions this week when the Chancellor provides her latest update on the UK’s finances on Wednesday (26 March), pension provider Aegon has predicted.

The number of people aged 100 or over has doubled in the last 20 years while the number of 90-year-olds is steadily climbing, according to newly-published official government figures.

There’s overwhelming opposition to the proposed introduction of IHT on unused pensions, according to a new survey conducted by SSAS provider WBR Group.

The IHT changes announced in the Autumn Budget have triggered a shift in the advice that IFAs are providing to their clients, according to a new study.

There is a major force reshaping pensions and it is unstoppable, it’s called demographics and it will require the pensions industry to rethink everything it does.

It’s a shame to admit it, but fear is clearly driving demand for Financial Planning advice in some quarters.