Not upheld: Pension transfer advice complaint against HARBOUR ROCK CAPITAL LIMITED

Decision detail

Summary

Mr A, aged 54, sought advice from Harbour Rock in March 2022 on accessing his Prudential pension to obtain £7,600 for debt repayment while keeping remaining funds invested. Harbour Rock recommended transferring to an Aegon SIPP, which allowed tax-free cash withdrawal without annuitization. Mr A's representative complained that Harbour Rock should have explored internal Prudential products or advised Mr A to contact Prudential directly, avoiding external transfer costs. The ombudsman found the transfer advice was suitable and necessary to meet Mr A's objectives, rejected arguments about lower-cost alternatives, and awarded £100 for distress caused by the unsuitable fund recommendation that resulted in no financial loss.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Mr A's objective to access tax-free cash while remaining invested required a pension transfer, making the recommendation suitable. Although Harbour Rock failed to document consideration of alternatives and recommended an unsuitable investment fund, the financial comparison showed no actual loss resulted. The ombudsman rejected arguments that an internal Prudential product would have been materially cheaper, noting that advice fees would apply regardless and that the 0.52% total charge for the Aegon SIPP was reasonable by industry standards. The ombudsman concluded the transfer advice was suitable and necessary to meet Mr A's stated objectives.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website