The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has ordered a financial adviser to pay £106,100 to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) to contribute towards the redress owed to those advised to transfer out of their defined benefit (DB) pension schemes.

County Capital Wealth Management (CCWM), which is now in liquidation, advised 575 people to transfer out of their DB schemes between April 2015 and February 2018, including nearly 150 members of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS).

Mark Abley was the adviser responsible for the advice, which the FCA said over half (56 per cent) of which failed to meet the required standards and showed a lack of competence.

The average transfer value was £287,943, ranging from £51,218 to £826,875.

According to the FCA, Abley received a financial benefit of at least £60,000 for providing the advice.

He settled the case and therefore qualified for a 30 per cent discount on the penalty.

If he fails to pay the full £106,100, the FCA will enforce this amount as a fine.

The regulator added that Abley did not obtain the information required to make a suitable recommendation or properly assess whether the members could understand and bear the financial risks of transferring their pensions.

Furthermore, it found that he failed to provide evidence to show that the transfers were made in the members’ best interests.

There were also errors in the calculations used to compare CCWM customers’ existing pension schemes with the schemes they were advised to transfer into.

The FCA ordered Abley to pay £106,100 to the FSCS rather than the FCA, and banned him from providing any advice on pension transfers.

“Mr Abley’s incompetence meant that he failed to give customers the advice they needed to make a significant decision about their retirement,” said FCA joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight, Therese Chambers.

“This included hundreds of people who were dealing with the uncertainty around the BSPS.

“He earned fees while putting their retirement money at risk. It is only right that he contributes to the costs of compensating these customers.”

As of 14 March 2023, the FSCS had upheld 53 pension transfer claims against CCWM and has paid out over £2.1m in compensation to customers of CCWM.

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