A former regulator who worked on the 1990's pension review has warned of FCA action over the spate of defined benefit transfer requests being made since pension freedoms came into force.
David Penney, now chartered financial planner at London-based Penney, Ruddy and Winter, previously worked at the FCA's predecessor, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), in 1999.
At that point in time the regulator was busy dealing with the fallout from the 1994 pensions review.
He said: "Back in the late 1990s when I worked on the Pensions Review, we found overwhelmingly that advisers had made a decision to transfer people out of their workplace scheme based on the critical yield.
"Many did not have any record of the conversations or recommendations, let alone the right documentation, but they carried out a lot of pension transfers.
"I think history is going to repeat itself. Based on my past experience at the FSA, I am convinced there will be a new review into the current spate of defined benefit (DB) transfers being carried out post-pension freedoms."
If they see the same reasons being cited each time by advisers, this will be a red flag for the FCA. David PenneyMr Penney said: "Given the original Pensions Review was prompted by the sheer volume of transfers, it is important advisers now look into exactly why and whether it is now justified, post-pension freedoms, to do a transfer.
"Are the motives being cited now - death benefits, flexibility and access to cash - good enough reasons? Is the fact transfer values are so high thanks to low interest rates a suitable reason?
"If we have another market correction people will see a loss in their funds as they've taken on all the investment risk themselves post-transfer out of a defined benefit scheme. They will ask questions about the advice.
"I am convinced the FCA will carry out a thematic review on this by visiting firms, to nip in the bud any potential problems 'for the greater good'. The FCA will be looking at client files.
"And if they see the same reasons being cited each time by advisers, this will be a red flag for the FCA."
The FCA did not comment on whether it was intending to carry out a pension transfer review - as has been speculated on widely - or whether it was concerned about the high number of DB pension transfers post-freedoms.
The FCA, until very recently, has been of the opinion that the first-case scenario should always be that a DB transfer was never in the clients' interest, although its most recent guidance on pension suitability recognised clients' circumstances could trump critical yields.
Despite this, in February, the regulator warned that individuals were at "serious risk" of getting the wrong advice to transfer out of their defined benefit pension schemes.
Anecdotally, advisers and providers have cited increasing numbers of requests for transfer valuations post-pension freedoms, although it is not easy to find comprehensive data on the actual number of DB pension transfers actually carried out.
Several different organisations can give an indicator of the activity based on the number of transfer value analysis (TVAs) reports.
Selectapension - one of the companies that can monitor TVA activity - has reported a 66 per cent increase in defined benefit transfer cases analysed by advisers and paraplanners in 2016, compared to 2015 when the pension freedoms first came in.
It also showed the demand for transfers rose as 2016 progressed, with a 120 per cent increase in DB cases analysed in December 2016, compared with the December 2015 figures.
Vince Smith-Hughes, retirement expert at Prudential, said: "Demand for TVAs reports has increased hugely over past few years – about 800 a month at end of 2016 compared to 100 a month prior to announcement of freedom.
"Prudential provides TVAs reports requested by advisers when they are considering a defined benefit transfer. Not all TVA requests result in a transfer, but this indicates how interest in DB transfers has increased."
But transferring is not straightforward. According to Peter Bradshaw, national accounts director of Selectapension: "With full scheme information, a TVAs report can be produced within an hour, but the whole transfer process can take months."
simoney.kyriakou@ft.com
