Aon has launched a service allowing pension schemes to check the suitability of their chosen IFAs on an annual basis.
The pension and insurance provider has designed the service in a bid to allow trustees and sponsors to check the competitiveness of their fee arrangements with advisers.
As part of the service trustees will receive an annual governance report outlining the details taken into account at the time of an IFA appointment, including the IFA's level of interaction with the Financial Conduct Authority, any changes to insurance policies, claims and complaints or ombudsman cases.
Kelly Hurren, head of member options at Aon, said the report will also benchmark fees in a move to help trustees assess whether the IFA "remained the most suitable support for their members".
Ms Hurren said: "For some time, trustees and sponsors of pension schemes have recognised the need to support members approaching retirement with access to high-quality financial advice - often by providing access to an IFA firm, or a panel of firms.
"However, while new IFA appointments involve a great deal of consideration and scrutiny from key parties, regular reviews of the ongoing suitability of these partnerships are vital, much in the same way as trustees monitor ongoing relationships with other third parties."
She added: "Given pension freedoms were introduced in 2015, some IFA appointments have now been in place for a considerable time and no trustee would have made such an appointment on a ’hire and forget’ basis.
"Having an annual review framework to help monitor key areas for an IFA is a good governance practice which also ensures that both the trustees and sponsor are comfortable with their ongoing appointment."
rachel.mortimer@ft.com
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