The Pensions Regulator has declared war on scammers with a new three-pronged strategy to protect savers from predators and punish criminals found guilty of participating in fraudulent activity.
The scheme reportedly aims to educate pension trustees and savers on the threat of scams, stop practices which might harm retirement outcomes, and fight fraud via the prevention, disruption and punishment of criminal parties.
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The Regulator said it launched the strategy to tackle the fresh wave of scammer activity amid the cost of living crisis, with spiking inflation and the rising energy price cap this autumn leaving a growing number of UK households at risk of fraud.
“The last two years have already been incredibly difficult for millions of people, with Coronavirus and lockdowns taking a massive toll on people’s physical and mental wellbeing, including their financial health in some cases. On top of this, the cost-of-living is rising rapidly, with the energy price cap set to surge yet again later this year,” said AJ Bell head of retirement policy Tom Selby.
“All of this means millions of Brits face being on or near the financial precipice in 2022. Depressingly, this is a perfect environment for scammers to thrive.”
The soaring cost of living crisis has led many people to seek urgent measures to make ends’ meet, with credit card borrowing surging as families eat into their savings and into debt in desperation to put food on the table.
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