What are the red flags of this scam?

You received a cold call, text, email, or social media message about your pension — cold calling about pensions has been illegal in the UK since January 2019; any unsolicited pension contact is a red flag • They offer a 'free pension review' from a company you have never heard of — legitimate independent financial advisers are authorised by the FCA and do not cold-call • They promise guaranteed high returns (8–15%) or access to 'exclusive' overseas property, forestry, crypto or structured investments not available through mainstream providers • They offer to help you access pension cash before age 55 (57 from 2028) — early access outside ill-health provisions triggers HMRC tax charges of up to 55% on top of the stolen amount • They offer to handle all the paperwork on your behalf and ask you to sign transfer forms without giving you time to read them • The firm cannot be found on the FCA Register at https://register.fca.org.uk, or the contact details they provide differ from those on the Register • They pressure you to act quickly, claiming a 'time-limited' offer or warning that your current provider charges high fees

What should I do if this happened to me?

Never respond to unsolicited contact about your pension — cold calling about pensions is illegal; hang up and report the number to Action Fraud. • Before any pension transfer, check the receiving firm on the FCA Register at https://register.fca.org.uk and call the number listed there — not the number the adviser gave you. • Use the MoneyHelper pension scams checklist at https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk to assess any transfer independently before signing anything. • If you have already signed transfer forms, contact your current pension provider immediately and ask them to pause or reverse the transfer — they have a duty to flag suspicious transfers. • Report to The Pensions Regulator at https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/pension-scams and Action Fraud at https://www.actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040.

CRITICAL investment Last reported: 28 Sept 2026 Share

A "pension review" call or message promises early access or higher returns — your retirement savings are transferred to a scammer-controlled SIPP and disappear

Q: Is this a scam?

Yes. This is a documented scam pattern. Cold calls, texts or social media ads offer a "free pension review" or early access to pension savings before age 55. Victims are persuaded to transfer their pension into a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) controlled by the scammer, then into worthless assets. Average loss £34,000–£82,000, plus HMRC tax charges up to 55% on early access.

Cold calls, texts or social media ads offer a "free pension review" or early access to pension savings before age 55. Victims are persuaded to transfer their pension into a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) controlled by the scammer, then into worthless assets. Average loss £34,000–£82,000, plus HMRC tax charges up to 55% on early access.

Also known as: pension transfer scam UK, pension liberation fraud, free pension review scam, SIPP scam UK, early pension access scam, pension cold call scam, pension drawdown fraud

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.

What to do right now

1 Never respond to unsolicited contact about your pension — cold calling about pensions is illegal; hang up and report the number to Action Fraud.
2 Before any pension transfer, check the receiving firm on the FCA Register at https://register.fca.org.uk and call the number listed there — not the number the adviser gave you.
3 Use the MoneyHelper pension scams checklist at https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk to assess any transfer independently before signing anything.
4 If you have already signed transfer forms, contact your current pension provider immediately and ask them to pause or reverse the transfer — they have a duty to flag suspicious transfers.
5 Report to The Pensions Regulator at https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/pension-scams and Action Fraud at https://www.actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040.

Red flags

⚠ You received a cold call, text, email, or social media message about your pension — cold calling about pensions has been illegal in the UK since January 2019; any unsolicited pension contact is a red flag
⚠ They offer a 'free pension review' from a company you have never heard of — legitimate independent financial advisers are authorised by the FCA and do not cold-call
⚠ They promise guaranteed high returns (8–15%) or access to 'exclusive' overseas property, forestry, crypto or structured investments not available through mainstream providers
⚠ They offer to help you access pension cash before age 55 (57 from 2028) — early access outside ill-health provisions triggers HMRC tax charges of up to 55% on top of the stolen amount
⚠ They offer to handle all the paperwork on your behalf and ask you to sign transfer forms without giving you time to read them
⚠ The firm cannot be found on the FCA Register at https://register.fca.org.uk, or the contact details they provide differ from those on the Register
⚠ They pressure you to act quickly, claiming a 'time-limited' offer or warning that your current provider charges high fees

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

What to do right now

Red flags

Sources