Trustees have more confidence in their own decision-making than they do their advisors’motives and behaviour, says HamishWilson, the specialist pensions adviser.
A recent poll carried out by HamishWilson has revealed that while a substantial 85 percent of trustees believe the best decisions are made by themselves, only 45 per cent aresatisfied they are not being fed a house view by advisors. This suggests consultants arenot being given free rein and the advice they are giving pension funds is constrained.
Worryingly, almost half (47%) of trustees feel that advisors often try and sell them‘flavour of the month’ or fashionable products and solutions, which are not necessarilyappropriate for their particular pension scheme.
Commenting on the results, Hamish Wilson, partner at the firm, said: “The survey broadly reveals trustees have faith in their own decision-making capabilities, whichsupports the conjecture that the new regulatory requirements for trustee knowledge andunderstanding (TKU) have been successful in this area.
“However, more troubling is the suggestion trustees have reservations about the advicethey are receiving and in particular whether this is given in their interests or those oftheir advisors. It raises a question mark over whether this is understood by trusteesmore widely, as the sample by definition is likely to be more engaged than the averageboard.”
The poll was carried out among delegates at the recent Professional Pensions Show 2010.
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