Displaying items by tag: MAPS

The government-backed Money and Pensions Service (MAPS) has today launched Pension Wise Digital, a digital version of its face to face service, to expand its free guidance offering to more people.

The UK’s financial regulators say working together has improved outcomes, particularly in relation to failings by SIPPs operators, the British Steel Pension Scheme scandal and the introduction of Consumer Duty.

Government-funded body the Money and Pensions Service (MAPS) is to combine its pensions services under a new Retirement Planning Hub.

Wealth manager and platform Quilter says the ‘stronger nudge’ towards pensions guidance, introduced a year ago, has so far produced “lacklustre” results and needs to be beefed up.

The annual Pension Awareness Week roadshows have gone virtual, with the launch of a five-day online event to help people with pensions, money and financial wellbeing.

A nudge from a pension provider drove three times as many savers to seek guidance during research by the Money and Pensions Service.

The Pensions Dashboards Programme, the initiative backed by the government's Money and Pensions Service, has launched a six week consultation with potential suppliers who will tasked with bringing the project to life. 

The companies will supply the digital engine which will make long-awaited Pensions Dashboards work.

The PDP also plans an industry-wide call in July and August for input on the data scope and data definitions published in working papers in April.

The consultation was delayed in April due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

The programme has also entered the next stage of the process to build technology to enable savers to view all their pensions via their chosen dashboard.

The six-week consultation period will enable the programme to look at the readiness, capacity and capability of tech firms that might be interested in the work.

It is in preparation for a formal procurement process anticipated to start in the autumn.

The programme has also said it will convene a Data Working Group representing all sectors of the pensions industry. The group will help finalise a set of data standards later this year.

Chris Curry, principal of the Pensions Dashboards Programme at MAPS, said: “The pensions industry faced significant challenges as a result of Covid-19 and the lockdown.

"Firms were rightly focused on day-to-day operations and the immediate needs of their customers – but while that was going on, the Pensions Dashboards Programme has continued its work towards delivering the technology that will enable individuals to see all of their pensions information online, securely and all in one place.

 “We know the sector has responded well to the current crisis and there is enthusiasm to engage once again in the important detail of delivering Pensions Dashboards. We are now making good progress on a number of fronts and are ready to shape detailed data requirements with the help of the industry while also starting engagement with the tech firms which will help us build the dashboard ecosystem.

“The concept behind Pensions Dashboards is simple but there are still complicated technical and regulatory hurdles to overcome. The work of the next few months will be significant in helping us develop a timeline for the delivery of these services.”

The Pensions Dashboards Programme, a body backed by the Money and Pensions Service, said in a progress report today that it is moving forward but has deferred two major full consultations due to the Coronavirus crisis.

Government-backed financial guidance body the Money and Pensions Service (MAPS) has appointed 11 leaders tasked with transforming UK financial wellbeing over the next 10 years.

The Money and Pensions Service, the government-backed consumer financial guidance body, has appointed acting CEO Caroline Siarkiewicz as its permanent chief executive.