PRG wishes all Reuters pension members a happy and healthy 2025.

It has been some months since we last published a newsletter, but the group has been active in responding to concerns raised by RPF and SPS members. Three issues have been brought to the group’s attention and we explain below what action we have taken.

CAPITA REJECTS EXPERIAN EXTENSION

Capita has rejected repeated efforts by PRG and the trustees to persuade it to extend for another year free Experian membership for RPF/SPS pensioners after their big data leak.

Following the letter sent by Capita to RPF and SPS members last November, PRG was approached by a number of pensioners with concerns about the level of personal information “exfiltrated” – stolen — during the 2023 personal data breach.

Access to HMRC data, which was not explained in detail in Capita’s letter, was of significant concern to members, who were only advised how to be vigilant in protecting their personal information.

PRG contacted Capita to ask if it would go a step further in protecting members by extending the free Experian membership deal for a further 12 months.

Capita replied promptly to say that the initial 12 months access to Experian was in line with market standards and would help to minimise the potential impact of the cyber incident.

Capita said it had no evidence that information resulting from the cyber incident was available on the dark web, whether for sale or otherwise, and that the Capita-appointed third-party specialist adviser continued to monitor the dark web.

PRG went back to Capita to say that a further 12-month Experian membership would give another layer of comfort to RPF and SPS members.

But Capita was not prepared to shift its position, so PRG took the case to Catherine Redmond, Chair of the RPF and SPS trustee boards. We asked the trustees to intervene on behalf of the worried members and press Capita for an extension of the Experian membership.

No luck, unfortunately. We have heard back from Ms Redmond that Capita refused to change its position. There will be no extension of the 12-month Experian membership to pensioners found to have had additional data exfiltrated in the data breach.

PENSION CALCULATIONS

Over recent months, some members told us they were worried about the accuracy of the basic information available when they asked Isio what pension a widow/partner can expect after the death of an RPF member. So PRG raised these concerns with the trustees.

We suggested that Isio publish on their website a simple example and explanation of how, in most cases, a straightforward pension for a widow/partner is worked out.

Clearly, there will be a few occasions relating to a more complicated history of service where calculations are not going to be straightforward and Isio will need to compute the figure.
PRG’s proposal was considered by the trustees’ Administrative Sub-Committee, and we have received the following response:

‘We identified some content that was no longer applicable, and some areas where the content could be improved to provide greater clarity to the membership. The complex makeup of the RPF’s benefit structure does mean that we face a difficult challenge of providing information that is accurate, accessible, and of benefit to the membership whilst not misrepresenting what members may be entitled to (given that entitlement varies across the membership). The ASC feel that we have found an acceptable balance but would urge members to contact Isio should they have any questions about their own benefits in the Fund.
Isio have been instructed to implement these changes, and this should go live in the coming weeks. We will let you know when this has happened.’

We are disappointed that the trustees have not supported our suggestion, and will be interested to see what improvements are made on the Isio website. 

In further correspondence with the trustees, PRG highlighted recent problems that members had experienced with pension calculations, and the delay in receiving a response from Isio. Trustees expect responses/acknowledgements from Isio to take no longer than 10 working days.  We have received the following information from the ASC:

‘The Trustee is aware of errors that have occurred in recent months relating to incorrect benefit information. They are working with both Isio and the Fund’s actuaries to understand and correct the errors, and put in place mitigations so that they do not occur in the future.’

‘There is a project planned to commence this year to provide further improvements to the benefit calculation process.  This will involve automating a number of the manual processes presently carried out by Isio to minimise errors.’

In the meantime we advise you to check the calculations you receive, and ensure your personal data that Isio holds is correct.

Should you wish to make a complaint, the Trustees have provided the following guidance on the procedure:

‘If any members wish to raise a complaint about the administration, they should in the first instance progress this through Isio’s internal complaints process. Complaints can be brought to the attention of Amy Vicarage at Isio, who leads the RPF administration team.  Isio’s complaints process includes an off-team review. If this does not resolve the complaint to the member’s satisfaction, members can then proceed through the Fund’s Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure (IDRP). This is a two-stage process, and each stage can take up to three months for resolution. Further information is available here under “How can I make a complaint?”.’

‘We would suggest that members commence any retirement planning 6 months, and at least 3 months, prior to their retirement date. If they know that their benefits may be complex (such as having AVCs) they may wish to contact Isio sooner.’

‘UPDATE’ STOPS PUBLISHING MEMBERS’ DEATHS

Members complained to us about the decision to stop publishing the names of pensioners who died in the previous year in the RPF Update information circular.

PRG pointed out to the trustees that many friendships were formed amongst Reuters staff but some have since lost touch and cannot rely on informal networks for news of colleagues.

We understand the trustees must be mindful of the laws of privacy under the Data Protection Act. However, PRG believes the limited information previously published in Update can be found in the public domain and has asked the trustees to review this decision with their legal team. We will let you know the outcome when we receive a reply.

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We hope that you will continue to keep us informed of your views and any pension problems that have not been resolved through normal channels.

Meanwhile, there are only two years to run with the current agreement for annual inflation increases to members with pre-1997 service. As we have seen in the press, there are changes being discussed that could have impacts on defined benefit pension schemes and their members. PRG will be closely monitoring developments.