Five steps to avoid a pension scam

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Are you worried about pension scams? Find out what they are, how they work and how to avoid them.

What is a pension scam?

Pension scams aim to trick you into handing over your pension savings. That could mean transferring your pension pot into a fake or high-risk scheme, or being persuaded to release some or all of your pension pot.                        
Pension savers who were scammed in 2024 reportedly lost an average of £33,848 each. Some people might lose less than this, though others could lose hundreds of thousands of pounds.

It can be very difficult to get your money back after a pension scam. 

How do they work, and what are the warning signs?

Pension scammers can be very convincing, so it can be easy to be drawn in. Scams can hit you at any stage of life, whether you’re paying into a pension plan or taking money from one.

Known scams include:
•    Luring you in with the promise of ‘higher’ or ‘guaranteed’ returns, perhaps through investments like overseas property and hotels, renewable energy bonds, forestry, parking, storage units, art, or cryptocurrency. The investments usually require you to transfer your pension savings into a new scheme, and a scammer claiming to be an adviser may take fees along the way.

•    Telling you that you can access your pension savings early through a loan or loophole. You could be hit with a double blow: not only losing your pension savings but facing a high tax bill if you access your pension plan before the current minimum age of 55 (the minimum age is rising to 57 from 6 April 2028).

A pension scam often starts with an out-of-the-blue email, letter, direct message on social media or phone call (pensions cold-calling was banned in 2019, but scammers may still do it). Or scammers might put ads online, although the Online Safety Act aims to stop this.

The scammer might say they’re a pension adviser or pretend to represent a government agency, legitimate financial services firm or well-known personal finance expert. Some scammers might offer you a ‘free pension review’. 

Regardless of how you’re approached, warning signs highlighted by The Pensions Regulator include:

•    Phrases like ‘loophole’, ‘pension liberation’, ‘loan’, ‘savings advance’, ‘one-off investment’ or ‘cashback’.
•    Offers of guaranteed or high returns from unusual, unregulated or overseas investments, offering no consumer protection. Investments that are only available after a transfer could be a sign of a possible scam.
•    Help to release upfront money from your pension plan before the age of 55.
•    Pressurised sales tactics that refer to opportunities being ‘time limited’ or ‘one-off’.
•    Complicated investment structures. 

Scams can and do happen to anyone, so try not to feel embarrassed if you’ve come up against one. Knowing the signs and talking to others about your experiences could help stop scams in the future.

How can you avoid your pension savings being scammed?

Here are five steps you can take:

1. Don’t be rushed into anything. If you’re pressured into making a quick decision, there may be something wrong.

2. Don’t just take their word for it. Scammers may give convincing answers to your questions or tell you about websites or phone numbers where you can check their information. Instead, it’s worth doing your own research, using your own sources.

3. Check the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) Financial Services Register. If the person or firm isn’t listed there, you won’t have access to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme or the Financial Ombudsman Service. And check if there are any non-UK addresses involved if you’re dealing with an individual or company. Sometimes, a person providing advice could be with a registered firm in the UK but is actually giving advice in the name of an overseas company that’s not FCA-registered.

4. Consider getting financial advice about any pensions change. If you don’t have a financial adviser, you can find out more about getting advice on MoneyHelper.

5. Brush up on the latest pension scams. There are useful guides on ScamSmart and MoneyHelper, while the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has information on how to keep your data and devices safe.

If you suspect you’ve been approached by scammers, report it quickly to the FCA online or on 0800 111 6768. And if you’ve lost money to a scam, you find out more about reporting to the police via Report Fraud.  

Staying safe online with Standard Life

Are you a Standard Life pension customer? Don’t forget that you can contact us via secure message through our online servicing. You can find out more on our website. This is just one of the ways you can get in touch with us. You can visit our support page for FAQs and other ways to get in touch.

We’ll never call you and ask you to log in to your account or send you an email asking for security details or other confidential information.

Keeping your data safe is a top priority for Standard Life. We have multiple technical controls in place along with strong business processes and staff training to help us do this.

And we have resources to give you more information on keeping your money safe from scams (for example, we’ve got details of phone numbers and websites to look out for, as they might be involved in scams).

 

A pension is an investment and its value can go down as well as up and may be worth less than was paid in.

Your own personal circumstances, including where you live in the UK, will have an impact on the tax you pay. Laws and tax rules may change in the future.

Standard Life accepts no responsibility for information on external websites. These are provided for general information.

The information here is based on our understanding in February 2026 and shouldn’t be taken as financial advice.