This follows a commitment in Autumn Statement 2016 to introduce a ban on cold calling about pensions and a subsequent consultation on the issues.

The government created the power to make secondary legislation to ban pensions cold calling through section 21 of the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018, which gained Royal Assent on 10 May 2018.

In August 2017, the government also consulted on the costs and benefits of extending the proposed ban to include all electronic communications (i.e. texts and emails). However, there are already restrictions on unsolicited direct marketing via electronic mail through existing regulation.

Therefore, the draft regulations in this consultation are only concerned with a ban on live, unsolicited direct marketing calls relating to pension.

Under the proposed regulations there will be a ban on unsolicited direct marketing calls relating to pensions products and services, except where the recipient of the call has given specific consent to receiving marketing calls on pensions from the organisation making the call; or the recipient has an existing client relationship with the caller and made a ‘soft opt-in’ for direct marketing purposes.

Exemptions will apply only to firms regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or to trustees or managers of occupational pension schemes that are regulated by The Pensions Regulator (TPR).

The conversations covered by the ban relate offers of a ‘free pension review’, or other free financial advice or guidance; assessments of the performance of the individual’s current pension funds; inducements to hold certain investments within a pensions tax wrapper including overseas investments; promotions of retirement income products such as drawdown and annuity products; and inducements to release pension funds early.

The ban will also cover inducements to release funds from a pension and transfer them into a bank account, or to transfer a pension fund; introductions to a firm dealing in pensions investments; and offers to assess charges on the pension.

The draft regulations include a number of ‘workarounds’ to ensure that legitimate activity such as that carried out by third parties for a deceased person’s estate or tracing and reunification activities to reconnect customers with their pensions are not affected.

The aim is to ensure the ban is flexible and can be updated to counter emerging threats.

The consolation is open until 17 August 2018, after which HMRC intends to make any necessary amendments to the draft regulations and publish a consultation response. Subject to Parliamentary timetabling, HMRC intends to lay the regulations in autumn 2018.

Ban on cold calling in relation to pensions: consultation on regulations is here.

Report by Pat Sweet