UK financial adviser Geraint Davies and two expats have called on the UK's Moneyhelper to publicise changes it has made to a generic pension guide which ‘misled' UK citizens overseas who saw it in its earlier version.
International Investment reported on 28 June how the managing director of Montfort International had alerted Moneyhelper to the 'Your Pension, Your Choices' guide which he said was only suitable for UK tax residents yet widely available and used overseas.
Changes have since been made to the ‘Who should read this guide?' section specifically saying in the new version that it was those who are "UK resident and are planning to access a pension pot built up in the UK from contributions into a personal or workplace pension known as a defined contribution or money purchase pension scheme.
"If you are not resident in the UK, planning to move outside the UK or have a pension built up outside the UK, you should seek regulated cross-border financial advice regarding your options."
Davies said :"I am pleased to see that Moneyhelper (MaPS) have decided to revise Their "Your Pension - Your Choices" at long last.
"The question is why has this taken so long to make this change? And of course why has there been no announcement as to why?
"I wonder how many recipients of the previous version who live overseas and or who were planning on moving out of the UK and or are foreign nationals living in UK have acted upon previous contents?
"How many have made the wrong decision is an important question and will Moneyhelper want these people contacted? We will have to wait and see."
He added: "In these days of Consumer Duty will advisers need to revise their procedures is surely another question?"
"What training have those employed at Moneyhelper received is of course another question?"
Expats Diane and Peter Bentley also contacted Moneyhelper thanking them for amending their brochure 'Your Pension, Your Choices'.
However they continued: "It was a big blow to my husband and I finding out that the tax information you gave us was only relevant to UK residents.
"There will be thousands of UK citizens living abroad who will be unaware of the changes you have made in the brochure without you alert them. They still may not realise that the information you gave us has never, and will never be valid."
The expats further said: "Is it possible that you can put out some sort of public notice to make all UK citizens aware that the brochure is not suitable for UK citizens living abroad?
"Perhaps the UK pension providers who have been instructed to distribute the brochures could send out a warning notice to their clients overseas? I am trying to contact as many relevant groups of people as I can, but it's a massive task and would be grateful for some support over this matter."
A spokesperson for the Money and Pensions Service said: "Your Pension: Your Choices is an important resource for pension savers. As with all our content, we regularly update it and take on board feedback from various sources when we do so. The newest edition does include some additions and it's available now via our MoneyHelper website.
"Our remit is to provide help and guidance to people, including making them aware of their general options and the risks associated with pensions. We would urge everyone to gather all the information they need to make the right decision for their circumstances, including taking regulated financial advice if they need it."
