Pensions Regulator Activism – An Update

In an article last year looking at the activity of the Pensions Regulator, we commented on how it was making effective and greater use of the powers.  We suggested that everyone responsible for an employer pension arrangement should be checking that they have robust and appropriate governance structures in place.

Active times

Frequent press releases from the Pensions Regulator this year have announced enforcement action.  Some of these represent the first use of a power available to the Pensions Regulator.

• On 23 January, the High Court ordered four people running scam pension schemes to repay £13.7 million to the victims of their scams.These four individuals must also pay the costs incurred by both the Pensions Regulator and the trustee appointed after the scam was discovered. This was the first time that the Pensions Regulator had asked a court for a restitution order under the powers granted by section 16 of the Pensions Act 2004.  Such orders are available