Pensions Act 2004 – Internal Dispute Resolution Procedures
Amendments contained in the Pensions Act 2004 (PA 2004) will allow trustees of occupational pension schemes to operate a simplified one stage internal dispute resolution procedure (IDRP) under section 50 of the Pensions Act 1995. Whilst a consultation paper on the draft Regulations was published by the Department for Work and Pensions on 24 January 2005, we have been waiting for details of the time limits which will apply to dealing with complaints. A draft Code of Practice “Dispute Resolution – reasonable periods” was published for consultation by the Pensions Regulator on 1 April 2005. The new IDRP provisions were originally due to come into force in April 2005, but commencement was been put back to 23 September 2005.