Consumer Wealth Ltd
Consumer Wealth Ltd was only in operation for four short years yet managed to bring chaos to numerous unsuspecting pension holders with their disastrous pension transfer advice.
Having been incorporated in December 2014, the firm entered into Member’s Voluntary (Solvent) Liquidation in 2018 following a number of Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) decisions against the Gateshead-based business. These related to their questionable advice to transfer pension funds first into Self-Invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs) through firms like Novia, and then into the ill-fated DFM.
By late August 2019, Consumer Wealth Ltd had amassed nearly £700,000 of claims from just 37 clients and has now – unsurprisingly – been declared insolvent. The firm’s reluctant shift into Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation saw it also move into formal default with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) on 1 November 2019. The number of claims submitted to the FSCS against Consumer Wealth is believed to now stand in the hundreds.
However, Consumer Wealth Ltd were not operating alone. Knight Meade Ltd was an appointed representative of the firm from late July 2016 until 30 March 2017, also trading under the name Pension Safe.
It has come to light that they acted as an introducer for Consumer Wealth, cold calling a substantial number of pension holders and offering free pension reviews. Their sales people often hinted that they were acting in an official government capacity to build trust with their targets. Once hooked, the unsuspecting victims were then passed onto Consumer Wealth.
