Testing has begun on the government-backed MoneyHelper Pensions Dashboard, with industry experts currently helping the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) with the first stage of assessing the service.
Earlier this week at an industry event, the Pensions Dashboards Programme – the entity within MaPS responsible for establishing the dashboards infrastructure – outlined the testing plan, which is set to run until early 2027.
This year, testing will involve “targeted industry recruitment” with up to 300 people as part of the first phase, with the second phase due to start towards the end of 2025.
The second phase will begin with up to 3,000 consumers recruited from different pension schemes. This will then scale up gradually towards a limit of 20,000 people.
TPR warns of ‘data debt’ as more schemes approach deadlines
New data from the Pensions Regulator (TPR) has shown that at least 80% of pension schemes are on track to connect to the dashboard system’s “central digital architecture” by their deadline, as set out by the Department for Work and Pensions last year.
However, Julian Lyne, TPR’s interim executive director of market oversight, praised the “major achievement” in getting pension schemes connected, but warned that there was still much more work to be done to ensure member data was accurate and up to date, ready for display on dashboards.
“Many schemes have underinvested in their data to now, resulting in a ‘data debt’, and these schemes are at real risk of letting savers down.”
Julian Lyne, TPR
“Better, more accurate data sits at the heart of an enhanced pension system and is absolutely fundamental to the success of the Pensions Dashboards Programme,” Lyne said. “Done well, data can become a pension superpower.
“However, many schemes have underinvested in their data to now, resulting in a ‘data debt’ – the build-up of data quality issues over time – and these schemes are at real risk of letting savers down.”
TPR’s research shows that just over half (51%) of the pension schemes it surveyed had already identified the data items they needed to ensure members’ information could be matched in the dashboards system. A further 41% said they would be completing this stage “soon”.
However, 15% of schemes did not hold crucial data in a digital format, including names, dates of birth, and national insurance numbers.
“Savers must first and foremost be protected from making bad decisions based on incomplete or inaccurate information on pensions dashboards caused by schemes’ data debt,” Lyne continued.
“More widely, however, trustees need to change their mindset – and appropriately focus on and invest in their data. We expect trustees to involve administrators in strategic discussions, look at synergies between data projects, and explore what new technologies can do for them to improve data quality.”
He emphasised that dealing with data issues could also increase efficiencies, reduce complaints, and support good decision-making.
Upcoming deadlines: August, September and October
While there is no connection deadline for July, by the end of August all private sector pension schemes with more than 2,500 members should be connected to the central digital architecture. All those with between 1,500 and 2,499 members – as well as any collective defined contribution schemes – should be connected.
All public sector and parliamentary pension schemes, including the Local Government Pension Scheme, have until 31 October 2025 to get connected. The last deadline of this year is 30 November, for all private sector schemes with 1,000 to 1,499 members. The full schedule is available here.
TPR plans interventions in areas of weakness
TPR’s Lyne said: “The success of dashboards depends on quality data: both the personal data schemes need to use to find savers in their records, and the value data they will need to return, often instantly. Without quality data, saver outcomes could suffer.”
He urged trustees and pension scheme managers to work with administrators and additional voluntary contribution (AVC) providers to ensure dashboard data was ready.
AVCs are a particular sticking point, according to the regulator’s survey, with only 42% of schemes with AVCs having discussed dashboard preparations with their providers.
Lyne also highlighted that around a quarter of schemes still held some data in non-digital forms, while only half of defined benefit (DB) schemes had recent DB value data for all members.
TPR has been targeting schemes based on data scores reported in scheme returns, Lyne said, and would step up its interactions with the medium-sized pension schemes that are set to connect to the dashboards system in 2026.
