Spence & Partners' Alan Collins says that communication has been key to improving service and having the panels and the PPF work together allowed issues to be dealt with immediately.

The pensions industry is often labelled as one that does not always react quickly to change, or to identify issues and resolve them pro-actively. However this cannot be said of the Pensions Protection Fund (PPF) and the recent successes they have had with improving their role in the wider industry.

In 2011 the average time for a scheme to go through assessment with the PPF was almost three years – against a target set at two. As a lynchpin of the industry, the PPF readily accepted that the situation needing improving and so began to set up specialist panels of expert pensions firms to work with the expertise within the industry. These firms, which we are proud to have been included in, were brought in to help bring knowledge in resolving issues, as well as pooling ideas around more efficient processing.

Roll forward to 2014 and the average time for assessment is now 20 months according to Sue Rivas, deputy director of scheme and member services at the PPF. Without a doubt the work of the panels has been a huge contributory factor in this improvement, as is shown by the several new panels that have since been introduced to provide input on further streamlining the assessment process and to improve the service as a whole.

Being a member of the panel has allowed us to use the expertise that we have built up since the introduction of the PPF in 2005. Attending panel forums and pooling ideas and strategies has been a big leap forward, and key to this has been the fact that the PPF team has listened to what has been said and introduced many of the suggestions and ideas which have come out of these forums.

Communication has always been key to improving service in most areas, so having designated individuals both from the panels and the PPF readily available has allowed any issues to be dealt with immediately. Gone are the days when issues are handled at the end of the process, with the inevitable delays that would arise.

There will always be room for improvement of course, so the job is not yet done. The PPF and its panels will continue to look at ways to do things better because, ultimately, it is the member that will benefit from the protection for their hard earned pension that the PPF can provide.

Written by Alan Collins, head of corporate advisory services, Spence & Partners

Alan_Collins@spenceandpartners.co.uk