The trustee of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) has said it will not be issuing second transfer quotations to members, but will instead extend the guarantee period for quotations to 26 January 2018.
The decision follows concerns over reports of “inappropriate financial advice” being given to members who feel pressured into making a decision. BSPS hopes that the decision to extend the guarantee to 26 January 2018, for anyone that receives a valuation between 1 December 2017 and 25 January 2018, will give eligible members more time to take appropriate advice.
The latest deadline extension follows the announcement that all BSPS members now have until 22 December 2017 to return their ‘Time to Choose’ option forms for their pension choices, instead of the original 11 December deadline.
The scheme said members who are eligible to request a transfer quotation (deferred pension scheme members who are under the age of 64) are not entitled to receive more than one transfer quotation in any 12-month period.
Any additional quotations provided within that one-year period are provided at the discretion of the trustee, but it has decided it will not be issuing second quotations to members.
Commenting, BSPS trustee chairman Allan Johnston said: “We are concerned by reports that some members have been targeted with inappropriate financial advice and feel pressured into making a decision on transferring their BSPS benefits. Extending the CETV quotation deadline to 26th January 2018 gives more time for members considering a transfer to obtain appropriate financial advice.
“While the trustee cannot advise people what to do with their pension we would urge eligible members to think carefully before transferring their scheme benefits out of the BSPS to another pension arrangement as they would be giving up guaranteed future pension income in return for income that might not be guaranteed and could vary depending on how it is managed.
“In the meantime, members should still choose between the new scheme and the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), in case they decide not to transfer out. The deadline to submit 'Time to Choose' option forms has recently been extended to 22 December 2017.”
