A new pension scam helpline has been set up by Zurich and The Pensions Advisory Service.

The line will offer impartial guidance to customers requesting to transfer their savings into schemes which Zurich has flagged as suspicious.

Those behind the pilot scheme said that under current legislation, providers have little power to block transfers when they have concerns the money is heading into a scam.

Michelle Cracknell, chief executive of The Pensions Advisory Service, said: “We frequently have pension savers contact our service concerned about why their pension provider or scheme is delaying or refusing to transfer their money.

“However, we know that there are other pension savers who are not contacting us and insisting to the provider or scheme that their money is transferred.

“We hope that this pilot can highlight that an independent voice that explains why the provider is delaying making the transfer, can help people understand why the provider is carrying out the due diligence.

“The pilot will use a dedicated number where our pension specialists will take this opportunity to explain to the saver all of the potential reasons for this, including the likelihood of it being a scam.”

Jim Sykes, chief operations officer for Zurich UK Life, said he hopes the helpline encourages consumers to think twice before handing over their savings.

He said: “We will encourage customers to contact the free helpline when we have clear concerns over the legitimacy of a receiving scheme.

“The helpline will provide an additional safety net for our customers and help to reinforce the warnings we already give to savers about potential scams.

“If the helpline is successful, we would like to see it rolled out across the industry to frustrate scammers and prevent more consumers falling victim to fraudsters.”

He said there should be stricter rules on unregulated introducers, who are often the link between consumers and unscrupulous schemes.
He also called for the earnings link to be restored for occupational pension schemes.

This would close the legal loop hole that allows scams to masquerade as occupational pension schemes.