Ex-Rowanmoor Ssas clients complain about charge under new provider

Some clients are so concerned about the unexpected charge they are considering moving their Ssas to a different company. 

WBR Group, which bought Rowanmoor Personal Pensions’ book of 3,500 Ssas in January 2023 has set out the unexpected costs in a letter to clients. 

The letter, seen by FT Adviser, stressed money in the pension schemes was not at risk and set out how it would resolve a historic issue relating to the professional trustee firm that had been appointed to a number of the schemes and introduce a new deed and rules to govern the schemes. 

This firm, Rowanmoor Trustees Limited is not owned by WBR Group and is still part of Rowanmoor. 

WBR Group said a pensions ombudsman meant it was likely to go into administration and for this reason WBR Group started a project to replace them and re-register the assets held by the schemes, the firm said it has done this at no cost to clients.

In addition, it is introducing a 2024 deed and rule, to replace existing ones, some of which have been in place for 18 years. 

The letter said such a revision would ordinarily cost customers £500 but as it is incorporating it with the change of professional trustee it means it can be discounted to £200 plus VAT. 

Martin Tilley, WBR Group director, said: "Whilst the two projects are separate, combining them has resulted in less inconvenience for the client and also enabled us to update the client’s deed and rules at a discounted cost, compared to what would have ordinarily been the case had this been a freestanding project."

Gavin Wood from Beckett Investment Management Group said while WBR Group being in charge of the pensions is better for clients overall, the £200 charge came as a shock to many. 

He said: “Even though it is only £200, it hasn’t landed well at all with clients who say something they've got to pay is completely outside their choice.

“A number of clients were expressing some degree of dissatisfaction with the way it's been communicated, and are asking us and other advisers to work through options as to whether they stick or twist with WBR.”

Wood added: “WBR are a good company so if we don't have to transfer clients we'd rather not but a number of them are feeling so strongly about being forced to pay a couple of hundred quid to do, what they see, as a basic re-papering exercise forced upon them.

“Some feel so strongly they are happy to pay three, four or five times just to get rid and go somewhere else.”

WBR Group’s letter went on to say the move to create the new deed will improve client experience and added enhanced interest rates for client default accounts have been negotiated.

Tilley added: "To date we have released over 1,500 deed and rules and the overwhelming response has been gratitude from our clients for resolving what could have been a more complex matter had our prompt, clear and decisive action not been taken. 

"We have so far received a handful of queries, but if any advisers or their clients have any concerns, either I or one of our team of trustee consultants would be happy to discuss them.”

Rowanmoor collapsed in August 2022 under the weight of hundreds of complaints related to failed offshore investments in its Sipps and in December 2023 it was declared in default by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

These were then re-routed from the Financial Ombudsman Service to the FSCS, which has been investigating them since.

tara.o'connor@ft.com

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