Hartley Pensions Limited (Hartley Pensions), is a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) operator authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). It also provides administration for a small number of Small Self-Administered Schemes (SSAS), regulated by the Pensions Regulator.
On 29 July 2022 the directors of Hartley Pensions placed it into administration at the request of the FCA, and appointed Peter Kubik and Brian Johnson of UHY Hacker Young LLP as joint administrators.
This article sets out the steps Hartley Pensions’ clients should take.
If you’re a client of Hartley Pensions, the joint administrators will be writing to you shortly to explain what this means for you and what action you should take. If you do not receive a letter from the joint administrators shortly, you should contact them using the details below.
Being alert to scams
All clients should remain alert to the possibility of fraud. If you are a client of Hartley Pensions and are cold called by someone claiming to be from Hartley Pensions, UHY Hacker Young LLP or any other company claiming to be involved in the administration, please end the call and call the joint administrators:
- Email: [email protected]
- Call: 0800 063 9113 (UK callers), +44 20 3282 8151 (international callers)
See more on how to protect yourself from the most common types of scams. ScamSmart pages on our website also provide advice on how to avoid investment and pension scams.
What happens to my pension?
If your SIPP is currently in drawdown, this is not affected by the firm entering into administration.
At the moment, Hartley Pensions is not accepting contributions from clients to be paid into their pensions. This will be kept under review and if this changes the joint administrators will contact any affected clients. You should not try to make payments into or transfer assets into your SIPP. If you do, they will be returned to you.
Existing pension assets are currently unaffected by the firm going into administration. They are held by trustee firms, which are not regulated by the FCA and have not entered into insolvency. If this changes the joint administrators will contact any clients affected.
Is there FSCS coverage?
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is the compensation scheme for clients of UK authorised financial services firms and protects consumers when those firms are not able to meet protected claims against them. The FSCS has eligibility criteria in respect of the activities and the people who are covered. This means, for example, that coverage may apply to SIPP products, but does not extend to clients who have invested in SSASs.
If Hartley Pensions is not able to meet claims against it, and the FSCS identify any claims eligible under their rules, customers will be entitled to apply for compensation up to the limit of £85,000. The FSCS will work closely with the joint administrators and investigate whether there are any claims that meet the qualifying conditions for compensation.
You can obtain further information about the FSCS on its website.
What should I do if I want to complain?
If you want to make a complaint, please speak to the joint administrators:
- Email: [email protected]
- Call: 0800 063 9113 (UK callers), +44 20 3282 8151 (international callers)
The FSCS will be working closely with the joint administrators to understand whether there are any protected claims that would allow the FSCS to declare a default and pay compensation. The FSCS will not therefore be opening its online claims service to claims against Hartley Pensions in the first instance.
For more information on the FSCS, please see ‘is there FSCS coverage?’ above.
What should I do if I have an existing complaint against Hartley?
The joint administrators will be writing to you to explain next steps.
The FSCS will be working closely with the joint administrators to determine whether understand whether there are any protected claims that would allow the FSCS to declare a default and pay compensation. The FSCS will not therefore be opening its online claims service to claims against Hartley Pensions in the first instance. The FSCS’s eligibility criteria are different to those of the Ombudsman Service and so the FSCS also needs to conduct its own independent investigation into whether there are claims it can uphold.
If you have already referred a complaint to the Ombudsman Service, you don’t need to take any action at the moment. The Ombudsman and the FSCS will be working closely with the FCA and the joint administrators to agree an appropriate course of action. The Ombudsman Service will contact you in due course regarding the next steps. The FSCS will also update its website with any news or important developments regarding its investigations.
If you have a complaint with the FSCS against a different authorised firm (i.e. a financial adviser-relating to a product within a Hartley Pensions SIPP, or a SIPP which transferred to Hartley following the original provider’s default) the FSCS will continue to process that claim.
For more information on the FSCS, please see ‘Is there FSCS coverage?’ above.
Do I need to use a third party to make a claim?
You do not need to use a claims management company (CMC) to make a claim against the firm or through the FSCS. CMCs may approach clients of Hartley Pensions offering help to bring claims against it. Be cautious if you are approached by one of these companies.
For most consumers, there is no benefit to using a third party to make a claim. Any clients of Hartley Pensions who believe they have a complaint against the firm should contact the administrators in the first instance, using the below contact details:
- Email: [email protected]
- Call: 0800 063 9113 (UK callers), +44 20 3282 8151 (international callers)
Why has Hartley Pensions entered administration?
Hartley Pensions Limited has sought professional insolvency advice and as a result the directors recognised it was insolvent and no longer able to operate outside of an insolvency process. Following this advice, the directors appointed Peter Kubik and Brian Johnson of UHY Hacker Young LLP as joint administrators.
The FCA also requested that the firm go into an insolvency process in the interest of clients.
At the time of failure, Hartley Pensions was subject to a number of FCA requirements. The requirements were imposed due to a number of serious operational, financial and regulatory issues that the firm was attempting to deal with and were intended to protect all of the firm’s clients.
What happens to Hartley Pensions now it is in administration?
We are in regular contact with the joint administrators who are looking at the options available, including the transfer of Hartley Pensions clients to another FCA regulated SIPP operator. If this is not possible, the administrators will look to pursue other options aimed at transferring SIPPs or returning SIPP assets back to clients.
Hartley Pensions also holds a number of SASSs (these are regulated by the Pension Regulator, not the FCA). The joint administrators will be in touch with further information on this if you have a SASS with the firm.
Although Hartley Pensions is in administration, it remains an FCA-authorised firm and is still subject to our rules. As explained below, Hartley Pensions is not currently accepting contributions into SIPPs/SASSs operated by it. You should not try to make payments into or transfer assets into your SIPP. If you do, they will be returned to you.
The joint administrators will publish detailed guidance of the next steps for Hartley Pensions clients and creditors on a dedicated website.
Source: FCA
