The Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (Conditions for Transfers) Regulations 2021

Standards of proof, relevant evidence or information, and timing for decisions regarding satisfaction of the conditions

6.—(1) In order for the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme to decide that the First Condition is satisfied, they must satisfy themselves beyond reasonable doubt either that the receiving scheme is established, or listed as authorised, as set out in regulation 7(4).

(2) Where the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme proceed to make a decision as to whether the Second Condition is satisfied in accordance with regulation 10(2), without making a request for evidence or information from the member in accordance with regulation 10(1) or (3)—

(a) in order to reach a decision that none of the red flags in regulation 8(5), and none of the amber flags in regulation 9(5), is present, they must decide on the balance of probabilities that none is present; and

(b) where, after applying sub-paragraph (a), they do not reach a decision that a red flag is present, they must decide that the Second Condition is satisfied.

(3) Where the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme do not proceed to make a decision in respect of the Second Condition in accordance with paragraph (2), and they make a request for evidence or information from the member in accordance with regulation 10(1) or (3)—

(a) in order to reach a decision that—

(i) either of the red flags in regulation 8(4), or the amber flag in regulation 9(2), is present, they must decide beyond reasonable doubt that it is present; and

(ii) any of the red flags in regulation 8(5), or any of the amber flags in regulation 9(3) to (5), is present, they must decide whether they have reason to believe that it is present; and

(b) where, after applying sub-paragraph (a), they do not reach a decision that a red flag is present, they must decide that the Second Condition is satisfied.

(4) In paragraph (3)(a)(ii), “reason to believe” means that there is a reasonable foundation for the belief, on the basis of all of the evidence and information available.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4), “all of the evidence and information available” to the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme means not only evidence or information provided by the member in a formal response to a request made in accordance with regulation 10(1) or (3), but also other relevant evidence or information, including in particular—

(a) any information provided by the member or another party to the transfer other than in such a response;

(b) the fact of a general or specific omission of evidence or information from that formal response; or

(c) any evidence or information obtained by the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme, including in the course of carrying out their duties in relation to that, or another, pension scheme.

(6) Where the trustees or managers of the transferring scheme have made a request for evidence or information in accordance with regulation 10(1) or (3)—

(a) they may decide that the red flag in regulation 8(4)(a) (failure to provide a substantive response to a request) is present provided that a further request to provide the evidence or information was sent at least one month after the date of the first request and at least one month has passed since the further request was sent;

(b) they may decide that the amber flag in regulation 9(2) (incomplete response to a request) is present provided that a further request to provide the evidence or information missing from the member’s response has been sent to the member and at least one month has passed since the further request was sent; and

(c) they may decide that any of the red or amber flags other than those referred to in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) are present no earlier than the soonest of—

(i) the date on which they have received all of the evidence or information requested;

(ii) the date on which they have received sufficient evidence or information in response to their request to decide that the Second Condition is satisfied in accordance with paragraph (3); or

(iii) the date on which they may apply the amber flag in regulation 9(2) in accordance with sub-paragraph (b).