The live-firm route
If the firm that advised you is still authorised and trading, your claim does not go to the FSCS. Under the FCA Handbook (DISP) the firm itself must consider your complaint first. If it rejects the complaint, doesn't respond, or its offer isn't fair, the Financial Ombudsman Service is the free, statutory escalation route.
What to expect, step by step
- 1
Authority and document gathering
You sign a Letter of Authority. Your SRA-authorised legal partner uses it to request your pension records from the current scheme, the former scheme, and the adviser firm. Redress Advisory coordinates and chases providers weekly. Most of the elapsed time at this stage is waiting on providers.
- 2
Loss assessment
Once records are in, the calculation is performed under FCA DISP App 4 methodology — what you would have had if you had stayed in your defined-benefit scheme, compared against your pension value today. The shortfall is the indicative loss.
- 3
Formal complaint sent to the firm
Your legal partner sends the firm a DISP-compliant complaint letter setting out the loss, the suitability failures, and the redress sought. From that date the firm has up to 8 weeks to issue a final response.
- 4
The firm's response
The firm can uphold the complaint (offer redress), reject it, or issue an interim holding response. By the 8-week mark the firm must either have issued a final response or explained why not — failing which the complaint can be referred straight to the Financial Ombudsman.
- 5
Decision point
If the offer is fair, your legal partner will recommend acceptance and the firm pays redress directly to you (or into a pension wrapper). If the offer is unfair, the complaint is rejected, or the 8-week deadline passes, we escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
- 6
Financial Ombudsman escalation (if needed)
The FOS is free for you. It reviews the firm's file and your evidence and issues a binding decision. If the FOS upholds the complaint, it can direct the firm to pay redress up to the FOS award limit (£455,000 for acts on/after 1 April 2019; £205,000 for acts before that date). Most decisions take 6–12 months.
- 7
Payment
A successful complaint — settled with the firm or directed by the FOS — pays redress directly to you, normally within ~28 days of acceptance, or into a pension wrapper where that is more tax-efficient.
Things worth knowing
- No FSCS cap. Because the firm is still trading, your claim is against the firm — not the FSCS compensation scheme — so the £85,000 FSCS cap does not apply. The relevant cap (only if the case reaches the Ombudsman) is the FOS award limit.
- 8 weeks is the headline clock. Once the formal complaint is sent, the firm has up to 8 weeks to give a final response. We chase regularly throughout that window.
- No win, no fee for you. You only pay the agreed engagement fee if redress is recovered. Engaging the Financial Ombudsman itself is free.
- Evidence is the bottleneck. Most of the elapsed time before the complaint is sent is spent waiting on pension providers and the firm to release records.
- Time limits still apply. Generally 6 years from the advice OR 3 years from when you became aware something was wrong, whichever is later. After a final response a separate 6-month FOS-referral window can apply. Read about time limits.
- You can stop at any time. The claim is yours — you stay in control throughout.