Skip to main content
The Actuary: The magazine of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries - return to the homepage Logo of The Actuary website
  • Search
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit The Actuary Magazine on LinkedIn
  • Visit @TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Visit the website of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries Logo of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries

Main navigation

  • News
  • Features
    • General Features
    • Interviews
    • Students
    • Opinion
  • Topics
  • Knowledge
    • Business Skills
    • Careers
    • Events
    • Predictions by The Actuary
    • Whitepapers
  • Jobs
  • IFoA
    • CEO Comment
    • IFoA News
    • People & Social News
    • President Comment
  • Archive

Topics

  • Data Science
  • Investment
  • Risk & ERM
  • Pensions
  • Environment
  • Soft skills
  • General Insurance
  • Regulation Standards
  • Health care
  • Technology
  • Reinsurance
  • Global
  • Life insurance
Quick links:
  • Home
  • The Actuary Issues
  • October 2015
10

Regulator publishes details of suspected £13.7m pension scam

Open-access content 13th October 2015

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has published details of three trustees who were deemed to have “misappropriated scheme funds and exercised poor trustee governance” in a suspected £13.7m scam.

2

The regulator said Alan Barratt, Susan Dalton and Julian Hanson were involved in mass marketing activities such as cold calling, transferring funds to their own personal bank accounts and receiving "exorbitant fees and commission charges".

The TPR said the trio, who were in charge of 17 UK pension schemes with 242 members, acted under instruction from David Austin, who was a shadow trustee in ultimate control of the funds. 

TPR said it was "reasonable to infer" that a pension scam had taken place in which funds worth £13.7m belonging to the members "have all but disappeared". 

The regulator declined to comment what had happened to the four trustees but said it has appointed Dalriada as independent trustee to administer the schemes to prevent further loss and to claim back funds. So far it has recovered around £400,000. 

Andrew Warwick-Thompson, executive director at TPR, said: "This complex case bears many of the hallmarks of a pension scam and should be seen as another reminder of why savers must remain vigilant against the threat of scams, which have a devastating impact on people's lives. 

"Our appointment of an independent trustee has helped secure approximately £400,000 from the schemes. However, for many hundreds members hard-earned savings have most likely been lost."

The regulator's announcement follows the first fining of a claims management company in August for breaching rules around nuisance calls.

The Hearing Clinic was ordered to pay £220,000 by the Claims Management Regulator, a department of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), after "bombarding people with millions of nuisance calls". 

The MoJ said 296 claims firms received warnings from the regulator between 2014 and 2015 and 105 had their licences removed. 

This article appeared in our October 2015 issue of The Actuary.
Click here to view this issue
Filed in:
10
Topics:
Pensions
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

IFRS 17 consultant

Hong Kong
Negotiable
Reference
118883

Wealth Investment Associate Manager

Edinburgh, Scotland / West Midlands, England, Birmingham / England, London
£40000 - £55000 per annum + bonus + benefits
Reference
118882

Lloyd's Managing Agency - Actuarial Analyst

London (Central)
Up to £65000 per annum + benefits
Reference
118881
See all jobs »
 
 
 
 

Sign up to our newsletter

News, jobs and updates

Sign up

Subscribe to The Actuary

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
Spread-iPad-slantB-june.png
​
FOLLOW US
The Actuary on LinkedIn
@TheActuaryMag on Twitter
Facebook: The Actuary Magazine
CONTACT US
The Actuary
Tel: (+44) 020 7880 6200
​

IFoA

About IFoA
Become an actuary
IFoA Events
About membership

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Think Green

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to The Actuary Magazine
Contribute

The Actuary Jobs

Actuarial job search
Pensions jobs
General insurance jobs
Solvency II jobs

© 2020 The Actuary. The Actuary is published on behalf of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries by Redactive Publishing Limited, Level 5, 78 Chamber Street, London, E1 8BL. Tel: 020 7880 6200