DB schemes' 'slow' response time holding back pension transfers

DB schemes take 'up to three months' to respond

Jenna Towler
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Pension savers who have requested information on their assets in defined benefit (DB) schemes are being forced to wait up to three months for the facts, Portal Financial has said.

The at-retirement adviser said defined contribution (DC) savers were waiting for about five weeks for information. Its analysis covered 12,852 requests for information made by Portal Financial on behalf of 7,913 clients to 1,396 different DC and DB pension schemes. Portal said Halifax was the quickest DC scheme to provide information, taking on average one-and-a-half weeks. Government-backed auto-enrolment scheme NEST took five weeks, it said. In the DB space, the Railways Pension Scheme was on a par with DC schemes with an average of just under two weeks. However, Portal said m...

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