Retiree takes action after pension losses

— Pensions ombudsman Tony King is charged with looking into the case alleging a breach of plan rules through failing to ringfence assets

A member who suffered a £49,000-a-year loss has taken his battle to the ombudsman, claiming scheme rules were broken to allow PPF entry

GPPs allowed to auto-enrol employees in 2012, says EC

The European Commission has given employers the go-ahead to automatically enrol workers into group personal pensions (GPPs) when personal accounts are introduced in 2012.

FTSE 100 buyout firsts

The buyout industry has received a shot in the arm, with the first two FTSE 100 companies offloading risks from their defined benefit (DB) schemes.

Pension buyout

Because this is a new area, we don’t know how it could potentially develop. The problem has always been that we’ve seen a freight train coming and we know that it could be dealt with by regulation. The market says ‘please don’t give lots of power to the regulator’, the freight train hits, and everyone loses.” Mike O’Brien - Minister for pensions reform

Aegon first past the post with third way annuity

Aegon has beaten its peers to become the first UK provider to launch a third way annuity.

Korean giant eyes Europe

One of Asia’s fastest growing and most successful asset management companies has arrived in London, as it begins its assault on Europe.

Battle over definition of Sipps

The debate over what constitutes a self-invested personal pension (Sipp) and its fees has reignited, as the latest research reveals the market is still booming.

Killik gives group Sipp green makeover

Killik & Co has led an assault on the group self-invested personal pension (Sipp) market by launching its first for specialist insurance firm Novae Group, as well as setting up a ‘green group Sipp’ for the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).

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Charities face pension conflict

Charities have been urged to address their pension schemes without delay, as regulations continue to change and the pressure increases on them to divert funds away from core projects to plug deficits.

Govt must confer on PA message

If the government fails to seek advice from the private sector about the marketing and education around personal accounts, it risks a misrepresentation scandal, or at best, the message being completely ignored, leading communication firms have warned.

Shift towards DC continues

The majority of UK employers now operate a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme, according to Capita Hartshead.

Cost-sharing will test LGPS

The introduction of cost-sharing will be one of the greatest challenges facing the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), a panel of local authority experts has claimed.

DB trustees heading for fiduciary management

Trustees of final salary schemes face an unstoppable momentum towards fiduciary management, according to Watson Wyatt.

PPF’s DB funds hit surplus for first time in 2008

The Pension Protection Fund’s 7800 index has revealed the aggregated funding position of its pool of defined benefit (DB) schemes at the end of April was a surplus of £30.3bn.

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Contribution issues must be clarified

The definition of ‘qualifying earnings’ for personal accounts and its conflict with typical pensionable earnings for existing schemes, is a fundamental issue in the development of personal accounts. Employers with existing schemes will wish to ensure their scheme is qualifying, so that they are exempt from enrolling employees into personal accounts.