PEMBROKESHIRE MORTGAGE CENTRE
Pembrokeshire Mortgage Centre Ltd, also known as County Financial Consultants, was a financial advice firm involved in the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) mis-selling scandal. The firm was authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under the Financial Services Register Number (FRN) 479220.
In 2017, many members of the BSPS were encouraged to transfer their defined benefit pensions into defined contribution arrangements, such as Personal Pension Plans or Self Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs).
By moving into private pension arrangements, these individuals gave up the valuable guarantees they had built up in the BSPS. In many cases, it was unlikely that their new pensions would provide the same level of long term financial security. For some, the advice they received was simply not in their best interests.
PMC was one of several advice firms investigated for providing unsuitable guidance in connection with BSPS transfers. The FCA found that a significant proportion of the pension transfer advice PMC gave was not appropriate, especially where it related to defined benefit pensions. In fact, the FCA concluded that sixty percent of the cases they reviewed involved unsuitable advice, putting clients at risk of financial harm.
As the firm is now in liquidation, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has been handling claims from former clients who suffered losses because of that advice.
