Not upheld: Pension transfer advice complaint against The Prudential Assurance Company Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr H complained that Prudential advised him to transfer his Defined Benefit Pension Scheme monies into a Personal Pension Plan in 1992, causing him financial loss. He also alleged Prudential failed to conduct adequate due diligence on Firm N, the intermediary that arranged the transfer. The ombudsman found the complaint was made within time limits, as Mr H only became aware of potential cause for complaint in September 2024 after seeing a Facebook advert. However, the ombudsman did not uphold the complaint, finding that Prudential was not responsible for the transfer advice and that Prudential reasonably accepted business from Firm N in 1992, when ICAEW-regulated firms could conduct investment business including pension transfers.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Prudential was not responsible for any advice Mr H received regarding the DB transfer, as the evidence showed Firm N arranged the PPP. Regarding due diligence, the ombudsman determined that due diligence obligations in 1992 were different from current standards, and found no evidence that Prudential should have declined business from Firm N. The ombudsman established that ICAEW-regulated firms could carry out investment business including pension transfer advice in 1992, and was not satisfied on available evidence that Firm N was unauthorised or that Prudential should have identified any such lack of authorisation.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website