Member communication will be key to defined contribution (DC) schemes’ resilience during the coronavirus crisis, according to Aon.

The professional services firm stressed that trustees need to have policies in place to speak directly to members amid significant market shocks.

Administrators face dealing with an increased volume of member queries amid concern that the current market environment will have influenced current holdings and projected member outcomes.

Aon also emphasised that trustees need to understand this impact and learn about schemes’ exposure to different industries, companies and countries in these difficult times.

An Aon checklist for drawing up an incident response plan also highlights the need to begin holding meetings as remote video conference calls, find replacements for advisers who are not available and work with administrators to ensure the handling of core transactions.

Trustees must also review signature lists to ensure the avoidance of key person risk where only one person can sign documents, while they should also understand the contingency plans of their investment platform.

Aon principle consultant, Madalena Cain, said: “Ensuring good governance of pension schemes is a challenging task at the best of times – and we’re not in those at the moment.

"With this is in mind, Aon has compiled ten questions which can help the trustees of DC schemes to check the resilience of their schemes.

"The questions address core areas aligned to governance, investment, administration and member communication - and ask how strong your planning may be.

“If you have plans, you need to ask yourself, are they flexible, are they tested - and can you make decisions as easily as in more normal times? With this guide we are essentially aiming to give DC trustees some clarity on the actions they may need to take.”

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