Partially upheld: General financial advice complaint against KW Wealth Planning Limited
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-5745059 of 2025-09-30T00:00:00+00:00. General financial advice complaint against KW Wealth Planning Limited. Outcome: Partially upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-5745059 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2025-09-30T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | KW Wealth Planning Limited |
| Product | Pension |
| Claim type | General financial advice |
| Outcome | Partially upheld |
| Remedy | Kingswood must refund fees for the missed annual reviews in 2020, 2021, and 2023. The refund should be calculated as the difference between the plan's actual value and what it would be worth had the monthly fees not been deducted, accounting for investment returns those fees would have generated. Compensation should be paid into the pension plan if possible, allowing for charges and tax relief. If not possible, payment should be made as a lump sum with a notional 15% reduction for income tax (reflecting 25% tax-free and 75% taxed at 20%). Kingswood must also pay the £100 already offered for distress and inconvenience. Calculations must be provided in clear format. |
Summary
Mr T complained to the Financial Ombudsman Service about Kingswood's investment advisory services following his transfer of pension investments in 2019. His primary complaints concerned failure to provide annual reviews despite paying for them, unclear charging structures, alleged lack of proactive portfolio management during COVID-19 and the Ukraine war, missing transaction notifications, account discrepancies, and poor overall service with unanswered queries. Kingswood conceded it failed to conduct reviews in 2021 and 2023 but disputed the 2020 review claim, arguing it had invited Mr T to review in February 2020 but he did not respond. The ombudsman upheld the complaint regarding all three missed reviews (2020, 2021, 2023), finding that Kingswood's contact attempts were insufficient and the timing of the 2020 review invitation was inappropriate. The ombudsman rejected other complaint points, finding adequate fee disclosure, valid contractual terms, and appropriate discretionary management practices. Kingswood was ordered to refund fees for the three missed reviews with investment returns, plus £100 for distress and inconvenience.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman found that while Kingswood was ready and willing to provide reviews, it failed to make reasonable and proportionate contact attempts for the 2020 review by relying only on emails rather than telephone contact. The timing of the February 2020 review invitation was inappropriate given the plan was only established in September 2019, and Mr T's expectation of an annual review around the plan anniversary was reasonable. For 2021 and 2023, Kingswood had already conceded the reviews were not conducted. On other complaint points, the ombudsman found no breach: platform fees were adequately disclosed, the terms of business remained binding through the IBOSS transition, discretionary fund management did not guarantee specific switch frequencies, and account discrepancies could not be definitively attributed to Kingswood's actions. The ombudsman applied FCA guidance on ongoing advice services, which expects firms to make reasonable attempts to engage clients who do not respond to review invitations.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| KW Wealth Planning Limited, all decisions | 5 | 50% |
| General financial advice, all decisions | 4,578 | 36% |
| Pension, all decisions | 15,579 | 47% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website