From January to May 2017 almost £5m was lost to pension scammers and it has been estimated that £43m has been unlawfully obtained by scammers since April 2014, with those targeted having lost an average of nearly £15,000.

Typically, scammers try to encourage savers to part with their money with false promises of low-risk, high-return investment opportunities.

To prevent this, the government has introduced a number of measures including:

• a ban on cold calling in relation to pensions, including emails and text messages;
• a tightening of HMRC rules to stop scammers opening fraudulent pension schemes; and
• tougher actions to help prevent the transfer of money from occupational pension schemes into fraudulent ones.

Cold calling is the most common method used to initiate pension fraud. In 2013, 97% of pension fraud cases brought to Citizens Advice stemmed from cold calling, which can include phone conversations on an offer of free pension advice, assessment of current pension funds and incentives to transfer a pension, amongst other things.

The government is also tackling pension scammers by ensuring that only active companies, which produce regular, up-to-date accounts, can register pension schemes with HMRC.

Limiting transfers of pension pots from one occupational scheme to another will mean trustees must check their receiving scheme is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), or has an active employment link with the individual, or is an authorised master trust.

Guy Opperman, Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion said: ‘Today’s figures highlight the extent to which people’s savings are being targeted and stolen through elaborate hoaxes – leaving them with little opportunity to build up their savings again. That is why we are introducing tough new measures for those who scam.

‘If people have saved for a private pension, we want to protect them. This is the biggest lifesaving that individuals normally make over many years of hard work. By tackling these scammers, people should know that cold calling, apart from exceptional circumstances, is banned.’

The consultation on pension scams closed on 13 February 2017.

The consultation response to pension scams is available here.