Administering a pension is not like putting up shelves, so don't do it yourself

Do it yourself is supposed to be cheap, but taking this approach to final salary pension schemes may end up costing firms a lot more than they realise. On the back of recent cases such as Trustee Solutions Ltd and others v Dubery and Sovereign Trustees Limited v Glover and others, the potential pitfalls of eschewing professional advice and administering a scheme incorrectly are fast becoming clear. Before the 1995 Pension Act, it may well have been normal for trustees to run a scheme like a hobby and muddle through as best they could. After all, how difficult could it be to organise pensions for company staff once they hit retirement? The rules and regulations in place now need to be strictly adhered to and those failing in this regard will be in line for hefty financial penalties. Employers and trustees must be clearly aware of their responsibilities and make sure they carry them out to the letter of the law. Seeking professional advice will help them do this as detailed in the article DIY Pensions, available on the Spence & Partners website. For further information please contact David Davison at Spence & Partners (www.spenceandpartners.co.uk) on 0141 331 1004. Issued on behalf of Spence & Partners by Blueprint Media tel 0141 353 1515 Date: Sept '07