NOW: Pensions Ltd (NPL) and NOW: Pension Trustee Ltd (NPTL) have each been given penalties of £50,000 for failing to correctly report significant events and breaches of law to The Pensions Regulator (TPR).

The significant event regime, part of The Pension Schemes Act 2017, required NPL and NPTL to report to TPR 'as soon as reasonably practicable' any failure of systems or processes used in running the master trust, which had a significant adverse effect on service delivery.

Generally, TPR stated that it expects a report to be provided within one working day.

However, in this case, historic failures that led to more than 80,000 statutory communications not being sent were not reported as significant events to TPR.

NPL and NPTL reported two of the same communication failures as breaches of law, but they failed to do so "as soon as reasonably practicable", the regulator claimed.

The communications, which were not delivered to scheme members and potential members, were intended to inform them of their rights under auto-enrolment legislation.

TPR said that as a result, these individuals suffered non-financial and, in some cases, financial detriment by being denied the opportunity to make choices over their auto-enrolment options.

"The master trust authorisation regime created a safer, more robust and sustainable market for the millions who save into these schemes," commented TPR executive director of regulatory compliance, Gaucho Rasmussen.

"And, as this case proves, when things go wrong, we will take tough action to protect savers," he continued.

"NOW has since satisfied us it has made changes to enhance its processes around reporting so TPR can continue to manage risks effectively, ensuring the security and quality of the scheme for its members."

Meanwhile, TPR has published a regulatory intervention report explaining how it used its powers to penalise the master trust and its trustee, following the decision of its determination panel (DP) to do so.

The report explained that, following an investigation, the regulator issued a warning notice to NPL and NPTL in August 2023, seeking penalties of £50,000 each for both entities.

In November 2024, the DP then issued a determination notice imposing a financial penalty on both NPL and NPTL, with each required to pay a £50,000 penalty, the statutory maximum for this type of breach.

TPR has since confirmed that both NPL and NPTL have paid their penalties in full.

The regulator explained that when an authorised master trust failed to report member communications failures and breaches of law to them correctly, it took action to ensure savers were protected.

It added: "This report shows that we take failure to report significant events and breaches of the law seriously and that we won't hesitate to take action to protect saver outcomes.

"We expect schemes to engage with us proactively and effectively when reporting issues, so that we can tackle problems early.

"This is the first time we have taken enforcement action against an authorised master trust for statutory failures to report. The case sets a clear expectation that master trusts must comply with reporting obligations or risk financial penalties."

A Now Pensions spokesperson commented on TPR's breach reporting action:

"NPL and NPTL have today confirmed action by TPR resulting from the way in which historic statutory communication failures relating to now:pensions were reported to TPR between 2020 and 2022.

"NPL and NPTL took appropriate steps to correct these matters for affected members when we identified them. We have also enhanced the scheme’s reporting processes and TPR has confirmed they are satisfied with the enhancements we have made."

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