Pensions Act 2004

Pensions Act 2004

2004 CHAPTER 35

Commentary on Sections

Part 2 – the Board of the Pension Protection Fund

Chapter 3 – Pension Protection

Restrictions on schemes during the assessment period

Section 132: Assessment periods

421. This section defines “assessment period”. The assessment period is the period of the Board’s involvement with a scheme, and during this period various restrictions are imposed on the scheme by sections 133 to 138.

422. Subsection (1) provides for references to an assessment period in Part 2 to be construed by reference to this section.

423. Subsection (2) provides for an assessment period to begin with the occurrence of a qualifying insolvency event in relation to the employer in relation to the scheme and to end once any of the following events occur:

• the Board ceasing to be involved with the scheme (and issuing a withdrawal notice – see section 149(circumstances in which Board ceases to be involved with an eligible scheme));

• the trustees or managers of the scheme receiving a transfer notice from the Board; or

• the conditions in section 154(2) (requirement to wind up schemes with sufficient assets to meet protected liabilities) being satisfied and the scheme being required to wind up.

424. A qualifying insolvency event is defined in section 127(3). Subsection (3) provides for circumstances where more than one insolvency event occurs.

425. Subsection (4) provides that an assessment period also commences where an application is made under section 129(1) or a notification is received under section 129(5)(a). In that case the assessment period ends once any of the following events occur:

• the Board ceasing to be involved with the scheme (and issuing a withdrawal notice – see section 149(circumstances in which Board ceases to be involved with an eligible scheme),

• the trustees or managers of the scheme receiving a transfer notice from the Board, or

• the conditions in section 154(2) (no scheme rescue but sufficient assets to meet protected liabilities) being satisfied and the scheme being required to wind up.

426. Subsection (5) provides that, where an assessment period has already begun in relation to the scheme, any further application or notification received during that period will be disregarded. This avoids overlapping assessment periods.