Pension scheme trustees have been urged to challenge administrators on how they will manage the operational demands that follow connection to pensions dashboards, rather than focusing solely on the 31 October 2026 deadline.

LCP warned that connection marked the start, rather than the end, of schemes’ dashboards responsibilities, with the public launch of the MoneyHelper pensions dashboard expected to bring additional member interactions, data requests and regulatory reporting requirements.

The consultancy said that trustees should now seek assurance from administrators across four areas: possible matches, manual benefit calculations, increased member demand and dashboards management information.

LCP noted that schemes could receive more 'possible matches' than expected once members began using dashboards.

Although administrators may have modelled likely volumes using their matching criteria and data quality, actual user behaviour could differ, with members potentially supplying incomplete or inaccurate information or failing to provide identifiers, such as National Insurance numbers.

Trustees should therefore understand how administrators intended to handle queries arising from possible matches, whether dedicated processes were being established and what additional resource might be required if large numbers of members needed support.

LCP also highlighted the challenge of manual benefit calculations.

Not all benefit information will be available automatically through dashboards, particularly for schemes with specialist member categories or limited automation.

The firm stressed that administrators would need robust processes to identify cases requiring manual intervention and provide the information within the prescribed statutory timescales.

Trustees should also ask how administrators were preparing for a possible increase in member demand following dashboards' availability, LCP added.

Recent research from WTW found that dashboards are expected to be used primarily during major life events such as retirement, redundancy and job changes, although schemes could face a surge in member enquiries following launch.

The consultancy argued that administrators should already be modelling the potential scale of this demand and considering how to resource it.

The fourth area identified by LCP was the collection and retention of dashboards management information.

Although administrators may be responsible for collecting this information, trustees remain accountable for ensuring it is recorded and can be supplied to regulators when requested.

LCP stated that trustees should confirm that administrators had clear arrangements for collecting, retaining and reporting the required data, including where responsibilities were divided between several providers, such as additional voluntary contribution providers.

LCP senior consultant, Ella Holloway, commented: “For many schemes, the biggest pensions dashboards challenge may not be connecting to dashboards itself, but managing what happens afterwards.

“Trustees have spent years focusing on technical readiness, but attention now needs to shift to member experience, operational resilience and ongoing compliance.”

Holloway said trustees should begin questioning administrators about post-connection arrangements before dashboards became available to the public.

“Connection is a milestone, but trustees should be asking administrators now how they will manage possible matches, manual calculations, increased member enquiries and regulatory reporting requirements,” she continued.

“The schemes that start preparing for those challenges today are likely to find the public launch of dashboards a much smoother experience.”

The Money and Pensions Service's (Maps) most recent progress update report revealed that dashboards were ‘on track’ to meet the statutory connection deadline, with 85 per cent of workplace and personal pension records now connected to the dashboards ecosystem.

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