The Financial Conduct Authority has urged consumers to be careful when considering transferring their pensions into a new scheme. The FCA is warning consumers to be wary of any contact out of the blue by call, email or text offering to discuss their pension or a free pension review.
Savers should be cautious about any unusual investments such as overseas property, forestry, storage units, care homes or biofuels, it says. Guaranteed returns, cash lump sums or the requirement to set up a limited company in order to invest should also be treated with caution.
The FCA added “Professional pension advice is not free. Professional advisers looking to act in your best interests are very unlikely to cold call you are offering their services. “Consumers should be sure to check any company offering advice or a pension review is authorised by the FCA. The regulator advises anyone considering investing their pension pot in unregulated schemes to seek impartial advice unconnected to the firm which has contacted them. Savers releasing cash sums from their pension funds could have to pay tax of up to 55 per cent, and those who have taken unregulated advice will not be entitled to protection from the FOS or FSCS.
To avoid this type of risk please do seek independent pension advice from a regulated professional business. Clifford Osborne Limited is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority offering initial meetings without cost or obligation to clients will all levels of wealth.
Clifford Osborne are pension specialists. Please contact us for pension advice or a chat. Clifford Osborne are Independent Financial Advisors (IFA) based in Eastbourne, East Sussex, offering pension planning advice, mortgage advice, pension scams advice and more. You can read our VoucherFor reviews here. Our clients often come from Uckfield, Lewes, Brighton, Tunbridge Wells, Hastings, Bexhill, Newhaven, Seaford, Tonbridge, Battle, Crowborough and further afield in Kent and East Sussex.
