Pension Scams and Fraud

Welcome to the scams and fraud page of the JSS website, here you will find useful information about pension scams and fraud.

Fraud and Scam attempts change regularly and you should always question any cold calls, emails and pressure to make immediate decisions.

Please contact justine.edge@jss.ukri.org if you would like anything else adding to this page.

Notices

Scammers are increasingly using cold calling to pressure people into making decisions about their finances.

Neighbour Spoofing similar to Number Spoofing, uses technology to display a local area number via caller ID to increase the likelihood that you will answer the call.

Never give out personal information in response to an incomming call and do not rely on the caller ID as sole means of identifying the caller.

Further information on Spoofing can be found on the following websites:

How do I know its JSS contacting me?

JSS will always confirm who they are when calling and you are welcome to ask additional questions to confirm our identity or call us back with the numbers from our website.

If you contact JSS we will always ask you to confirm your identity by asking a number of questions that only you will know.

How to spot a scam

This is a list of some of the common features of a scam:

Unexpected contact / cold calling.
Offers of one-off investments, offers that have a limited timescale, upfront cash investments and incentives, free pension reviews.
Recommendations of overseas investments with higher than expected returns or returns that seem too good to be true.
Promises of early access to your pension.
Being asked to take out a large lump sum or your whole pension pot in one go for them to invest for you.
No proof of who they are or claims to represent an organisation without identification.
Pressure selling or offers to attend your home to collect payment, paperwork or bank details.
Limited or innaccurate contact details, using a mobile number of not having a physical business location.
Cloned websites, these may look real, check for errors in spelling and things that dont look quite right.
The option in an email or text to click a link, always be wary as this may take to you the scammers website. Always check the link first.

How fraudsters may contact you

They may telephone you.
They may text you.
They may use a website to offer you fake services.
They may use email addresses that look official but are not.
They may write to you using letter headings that look official but are not.

Fraudsters try to make you believe that they can offer you something easily and may sound genuine or official. They may even know some details about you already such as your name or address, remember a lot of information can be found with a simple internet search. Don't be fooled into giving them more information.

How to protect yourself

Be suspicious and double check if:

What is offered seems too good to be true.
They ask for money; i.e. cash or to use an insecure payment method that doesn't allow the recipient to be traced, for example a money transfer, Ukash voucher or Paysafe card.
They ask for your bank account details.
You are pushed into making a quick decision.
The website is badly written, contains multiple spelling and punctuation errors.
An email comes from a free email site and/or contains poor spelling and punctuation.
An email arrives that you are not expecting.
You are asked to click on links in emails that have been sent that may take you to a website.

If you are emailing from a link on a website, sometimes the email you see on screen is in the format you expect but when you click on it, an email is created that contains a different address in the email header. Always check the email address before sending.

What not to do if you are contacted

This is a basic list of what not to do if you are contacted by a scammer, always think if it sounds too good to be true it usually is. Always check who you are talking to over the telephone and never click on a link sent in an email or text unless you are sure of who it has come from.

If you are contacted by telephone, do not call the number back that they give you to verify their identity, look the number up independently.
Don't panic if you receive a call, text or email, always contact your actual pension provider to check first.
Don't give out your personal details to cold calls. Don't be fooled into giving some information and then more later, this personal information can be put together to capture your identity.
Don't be rushed into making a decision.

What to do if you think you have been scammed

Report it to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). - external link
Report it to Action Fraud. - external link
Contact your pension provider immediately if you have already started a transfer.

National Fraud Initiative

JSS take part in the National Fraud Initiative (NFI), which is an exercise that matches electronic data within and between public and private sector bodies to prevent and detect fraud. Taking part in the NFI involves checking our pension records against government data in order to check that we do not make payments to members who have died or are no longer eilgible to receive a payment.

As the NFI only covers UK residents, JSS will write to you periodically to confirm your continuing eligibility for your pension. If you receive a letter from us, it is important that you do not ignore it as it may affect your pension payments.

Pension Cold Calling ban introduced

On 9 January 2019 legislation came into force banning pensions cold calling. This means that it is now illegal for companies to make unwanted or unsolicited phone calls to people about their pension.

It only applies to companies calling from within the UK and does not apply to companies outside of the UK, or to text messages or emails.

According to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) scammers are stealing as much as £91,000 per victim. According to the Money Advice Service there could be 250 million unsolicited pension scam phone calls each year.

The ban does not apply where:

the caller is authorised by the FCA, or is the trustee or manager of an occupational or personal pension scheme
the recipient of the call consents to calls or has an existing relationship with the caller.

If you receive a cold call about your pension you are encouraged to gather as much information as possible during the call and then report it to the Information Commissioner. - external link

JSS Website

The JSS website does not contain any personal information.