Dashboards 'need legal duty' to put savers' interests first
Savers could be at risk if no legal duty to put their interests first is placed on commercial pensions dashboards, The People's Pension has warned.
Consumers should also be given the legal right to all of their financial data in order to see a total picture of their finances, including their pension pots.
The report noted that there is a need for strong consumer protections when the dashboard moves from a single non-commercial version - led by the Single Financial Guidance Body - to multiple commercial ventures.
The calls were made in the master trust's response to a government consultation on dashboards, which closed to submissions today (28 January)
The People's Pension also said pension charges should be disclosed on the dashboard from day one to ensure full transparency, and a statutory body should be created to oversee dashboards in the long-term, with the power to set standards.
Dashboards should also include comprehensive and consistent information to avoid confusion and enable comparisons.
The report said: "This will require open data standards to be developed and for all dashboards to calculate their outputs using consistent projections of future returns and rates of retirement income."
Furthermore, a clear governance structure is vital to ensure that the development of the dashboard is focused on the needs of consumers, and consumers seeking to access the pensions dashboard will first need to prove their identity.
The provider noted that public confidence will "drain away" if pensions dashboards do not provide a "comprehensive picture of a consumer's existing pensions within a reasonable timescale". It added that legislation is the only way to ensure that giving people electronic access to their pensions data is afforded a "high enough priority by all pension schemes".
Director of policy Gregg McClymont said government figures suggest that up to 18 million people could eventually access pensions dashboards.
"The opportunities are vast but so is the potential for consumer detriment," he said, noting the British Steel Pension Scheme "scandal shows how easily things can go wrong".
"The strongest form of consumer protection is fiduciary law, so we're calling on the government to pass legislation to place such a legal duty on all dashboards operators."
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