Details are given in TPAS's annual review "Advising on Pensions: A Review of Activities 09/10" 

The report shows that visits to the TPAS website totalled 1,276,875.  Over 74,000 calls were made to our helpline and 16,000 written questions were sent to us by email and post.  6,000 people attended presentations hosted by our 'talks in the workplace service'.  The number of dispute cases (7,769) was similar to the number reported in our last review.

Our new website went live last September.  Feedback showed that 98% of users found the site easy to navigate and 95% liked the new look.  To help people with their decision-making, we have added further planners to the site.  In addition to our annuity and contracting-out planners, planners to help people decide whether to pay a voluntary National Insurance contribution, and help employers understand their duties under auto-enrolment, were added.

The most popular subject that people sought guidance about was again the state pension, which accounted for 37% of all calls and 31% of written enquiries.  Many people wanted to better understand the qualifying conditions and how they could improve their state pension. 

In relation to private pension arrangements, the range of questions was again wide.  Amongst the most popular subjects were: the effects of redundancy and leaving a pension scheme, tracing lost pension plans, decisions on retirement-saving, and the rules about trivial lump sums. 

TPAS 'talks in the workplace' service grew in popularity.  261 presentations were made, attended by over 6,000 people.

The number of complaints referred to TPAS was fractionally more than in the previous 12 months.  Complaints were mainly about delays, mistakes and applications for ill-health retirement. 

TPAS Chairman, Partha Dasgupta said "Last year the number of web visits exceeded 1.2 million: a new record.  The equivalent of one hit every 24 seconds.  The overall demand for our services increased for the fifth consecutive year. This increase reflects the prevailing economic uncertainty and the state of flux in the pensions system.

TPAS' mission to explain and resolve pension issues could not be achieved without the support of the pensions industry, our staff and volunteer advisers. I thank them all on behalf of our customers"

The report can be downloaded by clicking here.

Note for Editors

1. TPAS is an independent body supported by the Government which exists to provide information and guidance to the public on pension matters generally.  Our service is free and sustained by a nationwide network of volunteer advisers.

2. TPAS provides a national pensions helpline 0845 601 2923 which is open 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Monday to Friday.

3. Our website covers all aspects of pensions in the UK: www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk 

4. TPAS acts as an impartial mediator in pension disputes involving occupational, personal and stakeholder pensions.  It has not statutory powers and does not provide investment advice.

5. TPAS 'talks in the workplace' service presents to groups of employees in the workplace, about saving for retirement via a pension plan and the issues to be taken account of. 

6. TPAS provides a range of leaflets on different aspects of pension.  Details can be found on the website.

The new Fellows are Tony Copp, Terry Noton, John Freer, Dennis Strudwick and Neville McKay.

TPAS also announced that Mike Cabbett had been award the title of 'Adviser of the Year' 2009/2010.  Mike handled over 30 cases during the year.

TPAS Chairman, Partha Dasgupta said:

"Last year volunteers contributed over 52,000 hours to supporting TPAS, a truly remarkable effort, especially given the competing pressures on time these days.

"I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all of our volunteer advisers, now numbering over 450, for their contribution and congratulate our new Fellows and Adviser of the Year".

Notes for Editors

1. The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) is an independent organisation, operating at arm's length from DWP.   It provides independent, non-regulated, one-stop information and guidance to members of the public on pensions matters.  TPAS has three core services that it offers to individuals free of charge: information and guidance, dispute resolution and visits to the workplace to provide information on retirement planning.
2. TPAS provides a national pensions helpline 0845 601 2923 which is open 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. The dedicated pensions helpline for women is contactable during the same hours on 0845 600 0806.  In 2009/10 TPAS received 74,717 helpline calls, a record 16,391 written enquiries and almost 1.3 million people visited its website at www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk  and handled 7,769 pension disputes.
3. The service is provided by a nationwide network of volunteers and augmented by technical and administrative staff based in London.  TPAS is funded by grant-in-aid from DWP which is recovered by a general levy on pension schemes. 
4. Mike Cabbett Adviser of the Year - In 2009, Mike handled over 30 cases, a truly fantastic effort.  There were many times this year when we have asked our advisers if they could accept extra cases and Mike has always responded positively.  Mike's approach is always even-handed and his work is at all times of a high standard.  Mike's pension career started at Legal & General, before joining Noble Lowndes (now Mercer).  He is an Associate of the Pensions Management Institute and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Insurance.  When not working on TPAS cases, Mike enjoys archaeology and cycling.
5. Tony Copp - Joined TPAS in 1997, is now retired but was a senior actuary at Prudential. Tony has a scheme actuary certificate from the Institute of Actuaries.
6. Terry Noton - Joined TPAS in 1996 and has recently become the Regional Organiser for the Midlands.  I believe Terry used to work for BMW pensions and may have recently retired.
7. John Freer - Joined TPAS in 1997.  He works for AWD Chase de Vere.  John is a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute.
8. Dennis Strudwick - Joined TPAS in 1992.  He is an Associate of the Pensions Management Institute.  Now retired, Dennis was Life and Pensions Manager at Shephard Herriott Ltd.
9. Neville McKay - Joined TPAS in 1995.  Neville is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries. He has previously been a partner at the firm Coopers and Lybrand, now PricewaterhouseCoopers and is now with Towers Watson (formerly Watson Wyatt).

The new self help planner is designed to help individuals better understand and make decisions about qualifying for or improving their entitlement to the state pension. It is directed primarily at people who are not receiving or do not expect to receive the full pension (currently £95.25 a week). The planner provides general information and guidance about rights and options in respect of the payment of voluntary (Class 3) NICs, when and how they can be paid and whether it might be worthwhile to pay them.

There are time-limits on the payment of voluntary NICs.  Ordinarily you can only pay voluntary NICs in respect of any of the preceding six tax years - although since April 2009 it has been possible in certain circumstances to pay up to a further six years back to April 1975 if your state pension age (SPA) falls between 6 April 2008 and 5 April 2015.  The special concession which allowed certain other contributors to make voluntary NICs in the tax years 1996/97 to 2001/02 expired on 5 April 2009 for those reaching their SPA after 24 October 2004 and will expire on 5 April 2010 for those who reached their SPA between 6 April 1998 and 23 October 2004.

"This is unfortunately a rather complex area", says Malcolm McLean, TPAS Chief Executive, "but one which can be so important to many people who could possibly stand to gain and improve their financial well-being in their retirement years.  I would encourage everyone who might be affected to go on to our website and check out their position, particularly those people with gaps in their NI record who reached their state pension age between 6 April 1998 and 23 October 2004. The special concession deadline which allows many people in this age range to opt to make good missing contributions (without necessarily having to pay any money up-front) in the tax years 1996/97 to 2001/02 is fast approaching and from 6 April 2010 will no longer be available to them".

Notes for Editors 

1 Entitlement to the basic state pension depends on your record of NICs over most of your working life.  To get the full pension (currently £95.25 per week) you need 44 NI qualifying years if you are a man and 39 if you are a woman, although this is reducing to 30 qualifying years in both instances from 6 April 2010.  If you have less than a full NICs record a proportion of the pension is normally payable providing you have at least 25% of the years required (although this minimum requirement will no longer apply from 6 April 2010).   In some circumstances you can make good any gaps in your record by paying voluntary NICs to help you qualify for or improve your entitlement, and this is often worth considering if you are able to do so

2. The ability to pay  missing contributions is not available to those women who had elected and retained the right to pay the reduced rate married womans NI contribution (the "married woman's stamp"). It would also normally not be sensible to look to secure an increase in the state pension if it simply led to a corresponding reduction in other pensions or benefits in payment, e.g. pension credit or a married women's state pension claimed on her husband's contribution record. For those who do secure a meaningful increase in their state pension, however, the right to have the payment backdated to the start of their pension at their state pension age means that it might be possible to have the costs of the voluntary NI payments due offset against the arrears of pension payable, thus avoiding the need to pay any "up-front costs".

3. TPAS is an independent Non-Departmental Public Body supported by the Department for Work and Pensions

4. TPAS provides free information and guidance to the public on all aspects of pensions and a dispute resolution service in respect of Occupational, Personal and Stakeholder Pensions

5.TPAS operates a general pensions helpline 0845 601 2923 which is open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm.

6. The voluntary NICs planner is the latest in a series. Others already in use are an annuity planner and a contracting-out planner. All three are accessible on the TPAS website www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk

Commenting on the appointment, TPAS Chairman Partha Dasgupta said:

"Marta brings a wealth of financial and public sector experience to the role of Chief Executive.  In addition, she has a track record of contributing at Board level to social enterprises throughout her career which will be invaluable to TPAS."

Marta Phillips said:

"I am pleased to be joining TPAS as Chief Executive.  The need for a free, impartial, one-stop pensions information and guidance service is apparent with over 1 million people seeking help via the web, phone and e-mail over the last 12 months.  I'm looking forward to working with all our stakeholders to deliver an information service that continues to meet the needs of the public during a period of significant pension reform."

Commenting on the departure of Malcolm McLean from TPAS, Partha Dasgupta said:

"Malcolm has made an outstanding contribution to communicating pension's issues over the last 13 years.  His jargon-free, plain speaking approach to explaining pensions has helped many thousands of people across the UK with their retirement planning.

"Malcolm leaves an excellent legacy for his successor to build on.  He will be a hard act to follow and we wish him well in his future endeavours."

Malcolm McLean said:

"I wish Marta every success in what I am sure she will find a stimulating role.  She will be working with some great people and will find the volunteer workers amazing in what they can do and achieve on behalf of the pension consumer."

Notes for Editors

1. Marta Phillips was appointed following open competition.  Her appointment was approved by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.  A picture of Marta Phillips is available on request.
2. Marta is currently Director of Compliance at the National Lottery Commission, which she joined in November 1999.  She is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.  Her early career was spent at Ernst & Young as an external auditor and later in its IT Information Centre.  She worked for a short time at the Stock Exchange and for several years at Midland Bank Plc (now HSBC) working in the International Audit Department and developing and implementing Treasury computer systems.  Most recently she was Head of Finance for the European Social Fund Unit in the Department for Education and Employment.  Marta has also served as a Board member of a number of housing associations.  She was awarded and OBE in 2006 New Year's Honours List for services to social housing.
3. The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) is an independent organisation, operating at arm's length from DWP.   It provides independent, non-regulated, one-stop information and guidance to members of the public on pensions matters.  TPAS has three core services that it offers to individuals free of charge: information and guidance, dispute resolution and visits to the workplace to provide information on retirement planning.
4. TPAS provides a national pensions helpline 0845 601 2923 which is open 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. The dedicated pensions helpline for women is contactable during the same hours on 0845 600 0806.  In 2008/09 TPAS received a record 76,239 helpline calls, 12,897 written enquiries and over 800,000 people visited its website at www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk  and handled  7,026 pension disputes.
5. The service is provided by a nationwide network of volunteers and augmented by technical and administrative staff based in London.  TPAS is funded by grant-in-aid from DWP which is recovered by a general levy on pension schemes.

The review looked at the operational implications for a future increase in demand for TPAS services, and found that TPAS is likely to be able to deal with such an increase. The report also noted that as TPAS had been classified as a public body in 2006 it would be timely to test its corporate governance structures against best practice. A review was conducted on this basis and proposals for modernising governance, designed to increase efficiency and consistent with arrangements in place in the other pensions public bodies, are now being implemented.

The main changes to the way TPAS will operate are: 

• The current board of 12 will be reduced to 9 from mid 2010;
• The Chairman will be appointed by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, following open competition;
• All board appointments, including the Chief Executive will be made by the board following open competition and approved by the Secretary of State;
• A flatter management structure is to be introduced in 2010.

The above changes have been endorsed by the TPAS Board and unanimously supported by the Members of TPAS.

"This is an exciting time for TPAS" says TPAS Chairman Margaret Snowdon.  "The changes are part of  TPAS's growth strategy.  TPAS has helped so many people in its long history and we look forward to doing even more in the years ahead. Our current Chief Executive Malcolm McLean who has been instrumental in drawing up these proposals will be stepping down at some point in 2010. We have been very fortunate to have someone of Malcolm's calibre at the helm for the past 12 years. The bar has therefore been set very high for his successor." 

Notes for Editors

1. TPAS is an independent body grant aided by DWP and is classified as an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body. 

2. TPAS has been the only organisation providing high quality free and independent information and guidance to the public on all aspects of pensions for more than 26 years, through a small professional staff and network of volunteer professional advisers. Currently we help around 900,000 people annually through our website, helpline, workplace presentations and dispute resolution service.

3. The Members of TPAS are those advisers who by dint of having been a TPAS volunteer for five years are invited to become Members.

4. Margaret Snowdon has been involved with TPAS for more than 15 years, firstly as a TPAS volunteer adviser and Regional Organiser, as well as for the past three years as Chairman.  

The original website was created in 2006 and, despite frequent and continuing updates to the content, has not been subject to any major overhaul until now. Various customer surveys have pointed to the need for a more modern look and better user accessibility to the site.

"Initial re-action to the revamp has been very positive", says TPAS Chief Executive Malcolm McLean. "It looks and feels better and we hope it will encourage even greater use of the service which has already seen large increases in visitor activity in recent times. It remains our wish to make available the most comprehensive, free pensions information and guidance service in the UK. The provision of a quality website is integral to that aim".

Notes for Editors

1. TPAS is an independent body supported by the Government which provides free information and guidance to the public on pension matters generally

2. In addition to its website, TPAS operates a national pensions helpline 0845 6012923 open from 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. There is also a dedicated pensions helpline for women on 0845 6000806

3. TPAS acts as an impartial mediator in pension disputes involving occupational, personal and stakeholder pensions. It has no statutory powers and does not provide investment advice

4. TPAS provides a range of simple, easy to read leaflets on different aspects of pensions.

Full details with case examples are given in TPAS's Annual Review "Advising on Pensions: A Review of Activities 08/09" published today (1 July 2009).

The biggest single cause of the rise in complaints was poor administration with increases in both delays and mistakes contributing heavily to the figures.  Most of the complaints concerned individual pension plans, whilst complaints against occupational schemes actually fell by 2% compared to the previous year.

TPAS Chief Executive, Malcolm McLean, acknowledges that the tough economic conditions in the second half of the year may well have exacerbated the problem.  "There was undoubtedly a 'double-whammy' effect", he says, "Many savers had experienced significant reductions in the value of their pension savings from continuing stock market falls and delays in obtaining an annuity quote or award often meant a further reduction in the pension eventually secured."

A significant proportion of the complaints about delay reflected administrative malfunctions following insurance company mergers and take-overs.  Problems in integrating systems after a take-over frequently caused delays in the payment of pension benefits and in responding to requests from policy holders.  Individuals also advised TPAS of long delays in simply trying to get a response to their complaint.

Similarly, errors and mistakes were a source of discontent for many individuals.  They resulted, not only in some instances in a loss of expectation, but actual financial loss when expenditure or commitments had been entered into in the belief that a pension award or lump sum was correct when, as it later transpired, it was not.  In these instances, it was sometimes possible with TPAS's help to obtain compensation and/or a write-off of an overpayment where it could be shown that the individual had relied or acted on the incorrect information to their financial detriment.

The Annual Review details more of TPAS's activities in the year 2008/09.  The number of general enquiries it received from the public continued to rise - 75,000 calls were dealt with on the helpline on top of the 12,500 written enquiries received by email or post. .

Visitors to the TPAS website seeking information and guidance about pension issues across the board were also substantially increased.  A new web tool Annuity Planner was introduced.  In total, including the website visits, nearly three quarters of a million people used the TPAS service during the year.

A particular feature of the year was the increasing number of questions about the security of pension schemes and pension providers.  There was also a rise in enquiries from people with money worries who were seeking information on whether they could access their pension funds to improve their financial situation.

Due to popular demand, the dedicated helpline for women's pensions continued throughout the year.  Changes to state pension ages and qualifying rules from 2010 were also increasingly the subject of enquiries from both men and women.  At the year end there was considerable interest in the changes to voluntary national insurance contribution rates and the extended right to pay these from April 2009.

The TPAS 'talks in the workplace' service continued to flourish.  During the year 80 presentations were made to over 2,500 people.

Note for Editors

1. A copy of the report is attached.
2. TPAS is an independent body supported by the Government which provides free information and guidance to the public on pension matters generally.
3. TPAS provides a national pensions helpline 0845 601 2923 which is open from 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. There is also a dedicated pensions helpline for women contactable on 0845 600 0806.
4. TPAS acts as an impartial mediator in pension disputes involving occupational, personal and stakeholder pensions. It has no statutory powers and does not provide investment advice.
5. TPAS provides a range of leaflets on different aspects of pensions. Click here to be redirected.