- Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) set to spend £289 million delivering pensions dashboards (Source: NAO – Investigation into the Pensions Dashboards Programme)
- National Audit Office (NAO) investigation finds ‘a lack of skilled resources and ineffective programme governance’ in pensions dashboards project
- Project placed in ‘reset’ mode with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) set to bolster oversight of arm’s-length bodies and provide increased support
- DWP review revealed failure to meet government data protection and security standards
Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, comments:
“The final bill for pensions dashboards is due to come in at an eye-watering amount, almost £300 million.
“There is no doubt the government has committed resource to this project, but that figure misses out the sacrifice pension schemes will also make – both financial and in development time – to connect to the ecosystem. This doesn’t come cheap for anyone.
“With such a high price tag, it is essential the pensions dashboards are a success. Dashboards have the potential to empower pension savers, but they’ve been badly let down by a project that has, so far, over-promised and under-delivered.
“They need to work – to show all the pension schemes someone has built up. But getting that information is only half the story. People also need help in knowing what to do next. Having a simple, streamlined, and engaging customer journey is paramount to whether the pensions dashboards are a success, or whether they fail by turning off consumers through frustration.”
