The Pensions Ombudsman (TPO) has upheld a complaint against Core TV Solutions Limited for failing to pay contributions into a worker's pension despite deducting contributions from her pay.

The employer was ordered to pay £1,605.09 into the scheme, and to pay the complainant, Ms T, £1,000 for the serious distress and inconvenience it had caused her.

Ms T complained that the employer, despite deducting contributions from her pay, failed to pay them into the scheme.

The complainant contacted the employer about the unpaid pension contributions, to which it responded that it would settle the outstanding pension contributions in the next two weeks.

This was not acted on and over a year later, Ms T brought her complaint to TPO.

TPO wrote to the employer by email, but it was returned. Following this, TPO sent several letters to the employer’s registered address but received no response.

The case was passed on to an adjudicator who concluded that further action was required by the employer as it had failed to remit all of the contributions due to the scheme.

The adjudicator said that as the employer had not engaged with TPO’s communications for it to provide a detailed response, he had to base his opinion solely on the information provided by Ms T.

The adjudicator said that he had no reason to doubt the information provided by Ms T, so, on the balance of probabilities, contributions had been deducted from Ms T’s salary but had not all been paid into the scheme.

As a result of its maladministration, the adjudicator said Ms T was not in the financial position she ought to be in and had suffered serious distress and inconvenience due to the employer’s maladministration.

Given this, the adjudicator was of the opinion that an award of £1,000 for non-financial injustice was appropriate in the circumstances.

The adjudicator’s opinion letter was returned from the employer’ registered address and no comments were provided, so the complaint was passed over to the deputy ombudsman, Camilla Barry, who agreed with the adjudicator's opinion.

In her decision, Barry stated: “I find that employee contributions were deducted but withheld by the employer and not paid into the plan.

“The employer failed to rectify this and resolve Ms T’s complaint following the adjudicator’s opinion.   

“I find that the employer has acted in breach of the plan terms and conditions by not paying all contributions due to the plan.

“The employer’s failure to pay employee and employer contributions into the plan amounts to unjust enrichment and has caused Ms T to suffer a financial loss. The employer shall take remedial action to put this right.

“Ms T is entitled to a distress and inconvenience award in respect of the serious ongoing non-financial injustice which she has suffered.

“This was exacerbated by the employer’s continuing failure to resolve the dispute during TPO’s investigation into Ms T’s complaint.”

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