Upheld: delay in processing pension withdrawal claim complaint against Quai Investment Services Limited
Financial Ombudsman decision DRN-6266680 of 2026-04-24T00:00:00+00:00. delay in processing pension withdrawal claim complaint against Quai Investment Services Limited. Outcome: Upheld.
Decision detail
| Reference | DRN-6266680 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 2026-04-24T00:00:00+00:00 |
| Firm | Quai Investment Services Limited |
| Product | pension |
| Claim type | delay in processing pension withdrawal claim |
| Outcome | Upheld |
| Remedy | Quai Investment Services Limited must: (1) Calculate and pay 8% simple interest per annum on the net value in euros that Mrs P would have received on 28 May 2025, calculated to 2 July 2025; (2) Apply 8% simple interest per annum to the calculated interest amount in euros from 2 July 2025 to the date of settlement; (3) Pay £350 compensation for distress and inconvenience caused by the delay. |
Summary
Mrs P requested a £20,000 withdrawal from her SIPP on 8 May 2025, but the instruction was submitted incorrectly as gross rather than net due to Quai's failure to inform her IFA of the correct format needed to resolve a previous error. Although a corrected instruction was submitted on 21 May 2025, Quai did not request funds from the investment platform until 18 June 2025, and the payment was not made until 2 July 2025. The ombudsman upheld the complaint, finding a five-week avoidable delay caused by Quai's failure to communicate the correct instruction format to the IFA by 11 February 2025. Quai was ordered to pay 8% simple interest on the amount in euros for the deprivation period and £350 compensation for distress and inconvenience.
The Ombudsman's reasoning
The ombudsman distinguished between avoidable and unavoidable delays. Quai's failure to inform the IFA by 11 February 2025 that the instruction needed to be for £20,000 net was avoidable and caused the incorrect instruction on 8 May 2025. Had the IFA been properly informed, a valid instruction would have been received on 8 May 2025. Quai should have requested funds from Parmenion within 2-3 business days (by 13 May 2025), and the 10 business days for Parmenion to process was reasonable and unavoidable. Therefore, payment should have been made by 28 May 2025, but was actually made on 2 July 2025, representing a five-week avoidable delay caused by Quai.
How this compares
| Group | Decisions | Uphold rate |
|---|---|---|
| Quai Investment Services Limited, all decisions | 12 | 100% |
Source
Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website