Expert witness: Valuing pension income

In brief

• Expert accountants’ role.
• Valuation methods.

Pensions are essentially earnings receivable in the future rather than now. They are a perennial ‘hot topic’ as the cost of providing pension benefits has caused concern to many businesses.

Expert accountants’ role

Assessments of lost pension rights are needed in personal injury cases in which they may be an important part of future loss and employment disputes in which they may be a significant element of an employee’s total pay and benefits package. In matrimonial disputes, it may be appropriate in some circumstances to consider valuations of pension benefits other than the cash equivalent transfer values determined by pension providers.

There has been a resurgence in pension loss claims in recent years. One of the primary reasons underlying the increase in claims is the automatic enrolment onto workplace pension schemes for the majority of employees with minimum contributions from