Sole trader convicted and fined in prosecution taken by the Pensions Authority

Friday 15 March 2019: In Navan District Court, on Friday 22 February 2019, Alan Farrell of Beechfields, Crossantown, Ballivor, Co. Meath was convicted for failing to comply with a statutory request made by the Pensions Authority pursuant to section 18 of the Pensions Act, 1990, as amended. Judge Dunne fined Alan Farrell €350. The Pensions Authority was awarded costs of €650.

The request sought information and documentation detailing deductions made from employees' wages for pension scheme contributions and payments made to the trustee of the pension scheme, the Construction Workers Pension Scheme, as a result of allegations that monies were not being remitted to the trustee.

Commenting on the conviction in this case, the Pensions Regulator, Brendan Kennedy, said, “This conviction should act as a warning to all employers and company directors that the Pensions Authority treats a failure to respond to a request for information by the Authority very seriously. The Authority has a responsibility to enforce this requirement and regards non-compliance as a serious matter.”

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For further information, contact:

David Malone
Head of Operations
The Pensions Authority
Tel (01) 6131900

Note to Editors

The Pensions Authority

The Pensions Authority (“the Authority”) is the statutory body established by the Pensions Act 1990 (“the Act”) to regulate occupational pension schemes, trust based RACs and Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs) and to advise the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection on overall pension policy development. See www.pensionsauthority.ie

Under the Act, the Authority has power to carry out investigations into alleged breaches of the Act and to ensure that trustees, employers, pension administrators and their advisers comply with their obligations to current and former employees in relation to their pension contributions and benefits. The Authority’s powers allow it to conduct on-site visits without notice, seize and copy relevant documents; enter dwellings on foot of a warrant, and to prosecute any person that contravenes the provisions of the Act.