Changes to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) compensation regulations

The PPF provides compensation to members of defined benefit pension schemes where the sponsoring employer is insolvent. An important principle of the PPF is that compensation should be based on the member’s total pension benefits within a scheme, and that this should be subject to an overall compensation cap where appropriate.

A recent High Court judgment (Mr Beaton v the Board of the PPF) has resulted in the legislation being interpreted in a way that does not reflect PPF practice or the policy intent in cases where a person has benefits derived from a fixed pension.

This consultation concerns changes to PPF compensation rules to remedy the immediate problems caused by the judgment and ensure that the PPF has the legal basis to administer the compensation regime as intended.

The proposed regulations seek to clarify that a relevant fixed pension is regarded as attributable pensionable service for the purpose of calculating PPF compensation, including the application of the PPF compensation cap where relevant.