“The barriers are the complexities of the NHS Pension Scheme. There is no one answer [that] fits all. So this will be a long process with lots of teething problems along the way – which is expected.”
Needham suggested that NHS Pensions could apply filters to its automation in order to capture system errors.
“It has been known and a big problem in the past where statements were incorrectly issued due to a system error. I believe this is on their ‘to do’ list,” he said.
An NHS Pensions spokesperson said: “On behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care, we work in partnership with NHS employers to administer and update the NHS pension records of our 3.4mn members and we are committed to doing so efficiently.
“It is the responsibility of NHS employers to ensure that a member’s information they provide to us is up to date and accurate. There are multiple validation processes already built into the NHS Pensions Compendia system and any possible additional validation checks are considered at the point of system developments.
“We continue to work with employers to validate the records we receive from them and to help them improve their processes. Our employer team are available to provide any support,” they added.
Alex Janiaud is deputy editor at Pensions Expert, FTAdviser's sister publication
