The ombudsman's early determinations will be particularly important for schemes as they set a precedent for how liberation cases will be dealt with, which could help scheme managers and trustees in deciding whether to allow transfers to suspect schemes.
Will Mr X get his money back?
Today's case concerns 'Mr X', a former member of the NHS Scotland Pension Scheme, who transferred his pot of almost £370,000 to the Capita Oak Pension Scheme on the promise of an 8-12 per cent investment return.
He later asked to transfer out of the new scheme but the trustee, Imperial Trustee Services, did not respond to attempts to communicate.
The ombudsman's early determinations will be particularly important for schemes as they set a precedent for how liberation cases will be dealt with, which could help scheme managers and trustees in deciding whether to allow transfers to suspect schemes.
Will Mr X get his money back?
Today's case concerns 'Mr X', a former member of the NHS Scotland Pension Scheme, who transferred his pot of almost £370,000 to the Capita Oak Pension Scheme on the promise of an 8-12 per cent investment return.
He later asked to transfer out of the new scheme but the trustee, Imperial Trustee Services, did not respond to attempts to communicate.
The ombudsman determined the Capita Oak scheme should repay at least the original amount plus interest. However, he said Mr X may not recoup his entire investment.
Imperial Trustee Services, also the manager of the scheme, could not be contacted for comment.
Margaret Snowdon, chair of the Pensions Liberation Industry Group and director at consultancy JLT Employee Benefits, said the case was atypical for liberation cases.
She said: "It's not really to do with the transfer of DC benefits to a scheme. It's about the individual's ability to get his money out."
Snowdon added the cases involving blocked transfers to suspected liberation schemes would be more pertinent to trustees: "It will be interesting when [the ombudsman] comes out with that, because that will set the tone."
Snowdon said she expected the ombudsman to side with members complaining that their transfers have been blocked: "I expect that will be the case given what [the ombudsman] said in his press releases. People complaining are likely to be quite sure of the facts. However, she added: "Until we see it we don't know."
So there are more cases to come...
The other liberation determinations were originally due to be released earlier this year, but have been delayed. A spokesperson for the ombudsman told Pensions Expert at the end of July that the decisions would be released within a few weeks.
Jane Carey, business manager for the ombudsman, said about the cases: "They're all investigated individually and on their own merits. The reason for the length of time was because they needed to be looked at very carefully." She added they sought out extra information and comment from involved parties.
The ombudsman's update makes clear that this determination is the first in a series, with the next cases due in the new year:
...and yet there are more that go unreported
The ombudsman has so far received around 140 complaints related to liberation. Almost 90 per cent of these are from members whose pension provider has blocked a transfer.
However, he has said he expects there are many more cases of pensions liberation going unreported:
