Stephen Grimes had to raid other pension pots to pay his mortgage after scammers tricked him out of £27,000.
The 62-year-old warned others against assuming they are ‘foolproof’ (Image: Getty/Stephen Grimes/TPR)
A 62-year-old who lost two pension pots worth £27,000 to scammers has warned other savers to be vigilant in avoiding his “devastasting” mistake. Stephen Grimes was persuaded by a cold-caller to transfer the two pots into a scam scheme in 2013, after they promised a £4,000 cash incentive and a higher return on his savings. The former business development manager from Exeter was one of 245 victims defrauded by Susan Dalton and Alan Barratt, who stole £13.7 million by tricking people like Mr Grimes out of their life savings.
They were jailed for a combined total of 10 years after being extradited from Spain in April 2022, but their victims are continuing to reel from the largescale con, with some not even aware that they are owed compensation. Mr Grimes and his wife were forced to raid other pension pots to pay their mortgage in the immediate wake of the scam, but have since been able to recover their footing, thanks to a multi-agency scheme devised by the Pension Ombudsman and the Fraud Compensation Group to reimburse as many fraud victims as possible.
Susan Dalton and Alan Barrett tricked savers out of £13.7 million (Image: The Pensions Regulator/PA)
The initiative has already paid out more than £81.5 million to members of 38 scam pension schemes – but Mr Grimes has urged other victims to come forward, crediting the compensation and renewed acess to his savings with restoring his financial stability.
The 62-year-old also warned others to be careful when dealing with cold-callers, especially those advertising plans that seem too good to be true, and recounted the disastrous impact of losing 12 years of pension accumulation to a sophisticated criminal enterprise.
“Everything seemed above board,” he said. “I dealt with their administration team, and and all the letters, booklets and information looked professional. I even chose a ‘middle-risk investment’ option and was kept in the loop right up until my money was transferred. I thought I was foolproof.”
Mr Grimes only realised something was wrong when The Pensions Regulator (TPR) told him it had appointed trustees to take over the scheme after it was flagged as a vehicle for a “pension liberation scam”.
He said: “It had taken 12 years to build up those pensions, so losing that £27,000 had a devastating impact. The scam put my family through tumoil, affecting livelihoods and all our future plans.”
Stephen Grimes warned savers not to switch pension schemes on cold calls (Image: Getty)
“Anyone who wants to check if their pension scheme is being considered for compensation can do so on the FCF website and find the appropriate trustee’s contact details. If it’s not listed on the FCF website but they believe it may be eligible, they should contact the FCF directly for advice and support.”
Dominic Harris, Pensions Ombudsman, added: “A lifetime of savings can be stolen in an instant, and I have seen the devastating impact of pensions dishonesty on the members who have brought us their complaints.
“Anyone can be a victim of a scam and the frauds we have investigated have often been extremely sophisticated. I would encourage all pension savers to remain alert for pension scams and be cautious of high returns and low risk.”
Gaucho Rasmussen, executive director of regulatory compliance at TPR, also said prevention was the best way of securing pension funds and warned that “compensation is far from guaranteed for all those impacted by suspected fraud”.
He said: “Not all types of pension schemes used by fraudsters meet the eligibility criteria. We urge pension savers to stay on their guard against fraudsters. If you are contacted unexpectedly about your pension, you should stop, think and check who you are dealing with. If you suspect you’ve been scammed, always report to Action Fraud.”
