Victims of pensions fraud ‘lose £91k each’

CONMEN are stealing £91,000 on average from each pension holder they successfully scam, figures show.

Concerns are growing about sophisticated fraudsters who cold- call retirees and convince them to transfer their life savings into fake investments.

The £91,000 figure comes from research by the City watchdog and pensions regulator.

Separate figures from the City of London Police show that victims of investment fraud have lost almost £400million since April 2016.

But the full scale of the problem is unknown, as people are often too embarrassed or frightened to come forward. One of the most common tactics used by fraudsters is to offer people a free ‘pension review’.

But this is just a plot to lure retirees into a conversation before convincing them to hand over their money.

The con artists often promise guaranteed high returns or

‘Keys to the sweet shop’

access to unusual investments such as overseas hotels and green schemes.

The Financial Conduct Authority and The Pensions Regulator yesterday launched a TV campaign called Scam Smart to raise awareness of pension fraud among people near retirement.

They will run advertisements urging people to be on their guard when receiving phone calls about their pensions.

Experts warn that fraudsters are taking advantage of new rules introduced in April 2015 by then-Chancellor George Osborne that make it easier for retirees to access their pension pots.

Nathan Long, at investment firm Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘Rule changes that gave huge freedom to retirees have also inadvertently given fraudsters the pension equivalent of the keys to the sweet shop.

‘Scams that target pensioners are often initiated by unsolicited phone calls, texts or emails.

‘Your best bet is to ignore any approaches when you are contacted out of the blue.’