The Department for Work and Pensions has opened consultation in the hope of clarifying regulations around how the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) handles relevant fixed pension payments when calculating pension credits.

The consultation, open until the 24 July 2018, came after a High Court judgment case of Mr Beaton v the board of the PPF lead to legislation being interpreted in a way “that does not reflect PPF practice”.

According to the government, the judgment means that benefits cannot be aggregated with other relevant pension benefits, which could lead to “perverse and unintended outcomes” for a number of individuals.

The DWP said: “Given the significant negative implications that the judgment would have for some individuals, the government is proposing to bring forward legislation to remedy the immediate problems caused by the judgment, to ensure that the PPF can continue to administer the compensations regime as intended.

“Primary legislation would be required to fully remedy the problems created by the judgment and the government will seek to bring this forward at the earliest opportunity to ensure that the PPF compensation regime operates fully as intended to everyone who would otherwise be affected.”

The government is seeking the views of PPF levy payers, those receiving PPF compensation and the PPF board.

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