You may have received some nasty collection letters in the past when your SIPP was still run by the Guardian Pension Consultants (GPC) or Berkeley Burke.
But once the administration was taken over by Hartley Pensions – the original administrators of the Lifetime SIPP, the chasers stopped as Hartley’s took a more consumer friendly approached.
They would listen to the customers problems and mostly refrain from hard collection tactics.
Of course, one can clearly see how taking on some 17,000 clients (most of them with tainted assets in their portfolio) wasn’t a wise move when running a business, leading them to fall into administration last year.
Unfortunately, the consumer-friendly approach has changed since the joint administrators became involved.
Their role is to collect money, and the collection attempts are increasing.
Hartley’s are now chasing victims for money – up to the tune of £647,636 as per their latest filed administrator’s progress report
Consumer Duty
How can this be in line with Consumer Duty many ask?
Under the consumer duty, SIPP operators must act to deliver good outcomes for customers and avoid causing foreseeable harm to them – this goes further than paying due regard to their interests and treating them fairly. They also have to offer good value for money!
But who is getting paid?
The joint administrators (JA’s) fees are estimated to be 5 million pounds (£5,091,250.00)!
Compare this to the cost for employees and pensions specialists which are down to £2500 and £950!!!
No wonder that the skeleton staff can’t cope with the work, leading to:
· Members not being able to transfer out of their SIPP to another provider
· Members not being able to make contributions into their pension in order to pay fees – therefore leaving you to pay 20% more to pay
· Members not being able to receive access to their personal information in order to progress any potential claims to recover at least some of their losses
· Delays in providing the FSCS with the required information.
Customer Redress
All this is leading to customers not receiving fair redress when it is due and in a timely manner, particularly when firms have previously failed to conduct adequate due diligence.
Now solicitors are involved joining the representative respondents (”RR”) – members of a group of investors dealing with the JA’s to get better deals for the customers.
We find, from experience, that in action groups the driving forces usually have a vested interest in some way. That’s why they strictly vet who gets access to any forum and remove any party voicing negative feedback.
Impartial Claims Advice
Please remember that it’s always important to get impartial advice.
Has your IFA complaint been rejected? Are you stuck in your SIPP?
You may wish to speak to one of our Financial Claims Consultants if your case against the IFA firm was rejected and you have therefore never even tried to move forward against your SIPP provider.
Why don’t you let us review the transactions made – and if we can’t help you won’t pay a fee.
You may find that we can help where others couldn’t – and we’ve got the customer feedback to prove it!
You should also get in touch with us if you have any concerns about the advice you received or the way your investments are performing.
Most clients don’t understand that they may have suffered losses, as their annual statements show that the pension fund is still valued at purchase price.
We have been fighting your corner for years – and may just know a trick or two, helping you to finally obtain compensation!
Call Us Now For A No-Obligation Chat
We offer a free assessment of your situation to find out if you may be owed money redress. We will inform you of other options available to you. Don’t delay because there are time limits to claim your compensation. The best time to act is now!
Contact us for an informal discussion to explore your options. You’ll also get a better understanding of how we work before deciding on your best course of action.
Financial Claims Made Simple
ACL Consultancy Ltd have been in operation as a claims management company (CMC) for over 10 years and have offered the lowest flat fee service in the industry since 2017.
We are able to work for a reasonable fee because we don’t buy your data from the companies involved in your claim. We pass these cost savings on to you. Our success is your gain.
Our team possess a deep knowledge of pension and investment compensation, including overseas property investment, and welcome your call to find what solutions are available to you. So, you’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain by calling us today.