The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has requested the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to have some leniency on pension providers after the launch of pensions dashboards to the public for at least one year.
In its response to the FCA consultation on the matter, the PLSA argued that the deadline of April 2023 for larger schemes does not give providers enough time to live test and avoid any unintended consequences once the dashboards are fully accessible to the public.
The association said that thresholds around coverage, data matching accuracy and saver understanding must be met in the testing stage.
This is because the PLSA believes the dashboards programme should demonstrate that test users:
- Understand the initial dashboard limitations;
- Are not confused by the pension information, and
- Do not take inappropriate next steps after viewing their pensions on a dashboard.
The PLSA said that the “the risks of saver confusion are high” and allowing consumers to access the platforms could cause more harm than good.
“The regulations should prescribe that dashboards must not be made available to the public at the dashboard available points until extensive live testing of dashboards has demonstrated these thresholds have been passed,” it added.
As a result, the UK trade body has asked the FCA to give providers a “grace period” during the connection phase until 12 months after the full launch.
According to the Department for Work and Pension’s timeline, large schemes will be required to connect between April 2023 and September 2024, followed by medium schemes between October 2024 and October 2025, and then small and micro schemes from 2026, although they will not be covered by the regulations.
