Cold calling pension fraudsters targeted by police and pensions watchdog

If you’re coming up to retirement and thinking of heading overseas, you’ll need to watch out for fraudsters aiming to steal your hard-earned cash.

As consumer watchdogs issued yet another warning to pension savers about cold-calling offering free pension reviews, the UK’s Pension Regulator revealed detectives are investigating a number of illegal cold call-based pension schemes. To many, especially those who’ve been caught by the scammers, the financial services industry now resembles the Wild West of the USA at its worst time, with scandal following scandal and seemingly no end in sight.

The warning involves advisers deliberately defrauding pension savers by cold calling them and offering free pension reviews which invariably lead to offers to switch their scheme to one offering high returns and even cash incentives. Of course, the crooks don’t mention the high risk profile of the schemes nor the fact that the schemes are poorly run, nor that offering cash incentives is illegal. The current investigation has resulted in the appointment of independent trustees to overseas the Alderley Wealth Management pension scheme and its £3 million of investments. Investigators believe there are concerns about its previous management.

Other concerns noted by the regulator include the ignoring of requests that funds should only be invested in low-risk, UK-based investments. It seems investors’ cash was placed in high-risk and even illiquid investments based overseas. Another issue under investigation is that financial advisors are being paid to introduce clients to the scammers and, although cold-calling isn’t against the law as yet, no reputable business is involved in it.

Put basically, a cold call is simply an attempt to steal pension savings. At the present time, several arrests have already been made and others have been interviewed under caution by police in the North East. Search warrants have also been issued for four businesses and homes in Nottingham, Sunderland and Newcastle. The pensions watchdog is urging anyone who receives a cold call from an unknown person to immediately call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 and report the contact.