PenCom to penalise PFAs for benefits wrongly paid-Nike Popoola

Acting Director-General, PenCom, Mrs Aisha Dahir-Umar

The National Pension Commission has ordered the Pension Fund Administrators to investigate all reported cases of dead Retirement Savings Account holders before making any payment to the beneficiaries.

The regulator said any wrong payment of death entitlement would be borne by the PFA.

PenCom stated this in a circular to all licensed Pension Fund Administrators on, ‘Addendum to the circular on revised procedures on the processing of death benefits.’

Part of it read, “In the event of payment to wrong beneficiaries, PFA shall be liable and pay from its statutory reserve fund.”

Earlier, the commission had revealed that some unidentified fraudsters under the disguise of being relatives of workers and retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme had been approaching the PFAs to collect the pensions of contributors.

The fraudsters, who had been deceiving the PFAs with fake documents, had successfully collected the pension benefits of some living workers and retirees after providing ‘evidences’ that they were dead.

The commission revealed this in a circular titled, ‘Revised procedures on processing of death benefits’, which was sent to the PFAs.

It stated in the circular, “The commission has received series of complaints from retirees, who alleged that their PFAs have wrongfully paid their benefits to their next of kin or legal beneficiaries, while they are still alive and in active service without their consent.

“Following these complaints and reports by the PFAs, it has become imperative to issue additional measures to curb these complaints and strengthen the processes and practices of processing and payment of death benefits.”

However, many of such cases had continued to drag without being resolved.

In the new circular, the commission said the PFAs were required to enhance the internal controls and carry out further investigation on the documentation submitted by the next of kin of the deceased before submission to the commission for approval.

It stated that the PFAs should ensure due diligence and conduct search at the probate registry of the issuing authority to confirm the genuineness of the documents, as well as the verification of the named administrator and sureties.

CULLED FROM PUNCH.