Data from Action Fraud has revealed that £17,657,249 in pension savings was lost to fraud in 2024, with individuals losing an average of £33,848 each.

A total of 519 cases were reported and £48,129 lost per day last year, with analysis showing that the most common tactics were pressuring individuals into risky investments and taking over pension accounts by impersonating the owner.

Both the number of reports and total losses are slightly lower than in 2023, when 559 cases saw £17,750,635 lost at an average of £46,959 per victim.

However, The Pensions Regulator (TPR) executive director of regulatory compliance, Gaucho Rasmussen, said that this year’s figures are still an “alarming wake-up call".

He said: “These statistics are another alarming wake-up call and reveal the shocking reality of how much money is stolen from hardworking savers in just one year,

“Fraudsters are ruthless, using fake investment deals and impersonation scams to exploit vulnerabilities and get their hands on savers’ hard-earned pensions. We urge every saver to ‘stop, think and check’ to protect their pension as if their future depends on it - because it does."

In response to the significant losses, Action Fraud, with support from the Pensions Scams Action Group (PSAG), which is led by TPR, launched a pension fraud awareness campaign.

The initiative warns people to protect their pension accounts and remain cautious of suspicious investment offers that could be scams.

However, RSM UK partner and head of pensions, Ian Bell, argued that trustees also have a responsibility in combating fraudulent activity to further protect savers from pension scams.

“Trustees and administrators have a key role to play in embedding the Pensions Regulator’s scam controls into touchpoints with clients, from wake‑up packs, through transfer triage and applying red/amber flags consistently," he stated.

“These controls need to be tested and revisited to ensure that they remain fit for purpose as threats evolve. Front-line teams must also be prepared for AI-enabled impersonation to combat fraud threats and spot red flags at the earliest stage.”

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