Recommendation 35

Where a pension scheme has been used as a vehicle for a pension liberation scam the Pensions Regulator will appoint an independent trustee. The trustees management fees and associated legal costs will be met directly from the scheme’s assets, which often need to be recovered first by the trustee. With one professional trustee being appointed to the vast majority of schemes and a number of complaints from victims about these fees and the quality of communication we welcome the offer from the Department to look at this market. In a larger market, complaints about the communication and fees paid to professional trustees might be corrected by competition. We recommend that the Pensions Regulator should review the value for money that scam victims get from trustees appointed to scam schemes within a year.