Upheld: pension transfer delay and potential financial loss due to administrative error complaint against Interactive Investor Service Limited trading as Interactive Investor (IISL)
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-6175933 of 2026-04-28T00:00:00+00:00. pension transfer delay and potential financial loss due to administrative error complaint against Interactive Investor Service Limited trading as Interactive Investor (IISL). Outcome: Upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-6175933 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2026-04-28T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | Interactive Investor Service Limited trading as Interactive Investor (IISL) |
| Product | pension (SIPP) |
| Claim type | pension transfer delay and potential financial loss due to administrative error |
| Outcome | Upheld |
| Remedy | IISL must recalculate the transfer value using 20 August 2025 as the trade date and compare it to the amount actually transferred. If the notional value is higher than the actual amount transferred, IISL must pay the difference to Mrs G. Compensation should be paid into the pension plan if possible, accounting for charges and tax relief. If not possible, payment should be made as a lump sum with a 15% notional reduction for income tax. IISL has already paid £180 compensation for distress and inconvenience, which the ombudsman found appropriate and no further payment is required for this element. |
Summary
Mrs G complained that IISL caused delays in transferring her SIPP pension to Provider A, resulting in financial loss. The initial transfer request on 12 August 2025 was rejected because IISL's systems contained outdated address information. After IISL corrected the address on 28 August 2025, a new transfer request was accepted and processed, with funds transferred on 12 September 2025. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding that IISL's administrative error caused the delay. The key dispute was the appropriate trade date for calculating loss: the ombudsman determined 20 August 2025 (six working days from initial receipt) was fair, rather than IISL's proposed 22 August 2025. IISL must recalculate using 20 August 2025 and pay any resulting loss to Mrs G, with compensation structured to account for tax implications.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman accepted that IISL's failure to maintain current address information caused the initial rejection and delay. The key issue was determining the appropriate trade date for calculating whether Mrs G suffered a loss. The ombudsman concluded that six working days was a reasonable processing time, and therefore if the initial request had been accepted on 12 August 2025, trades should have been placed on 20 August 2025 (six working days later). This date should be used for the loss calculation rather than IISL's proposed date of 22 August 2025.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive Investor Service Limited trading as Interactive Investor (IISL), all decisions | 1 | 100% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website