Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
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592. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if his Department or any body under its aegis has any estimate of the value of unclaimed private pension assets in Ireland; if he outline what happens to such funds; if he will outline the current tracing system in place to ensure that deferred scheme members receive the pension they are entitled to; if he has any plans to improve the pension tracing system including, for example, through the introduction of a form of digital portal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37544/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Neither my Department nor the Pensions Authority receive data returns from scheme providers in relation to unclaimed private pension assets. Data in relation to unclaimed pots is currently only available directly from providers.

Having said that, in November 2023, the Pensions Authority, at the request of the then Minister for Finance, obtained information from a selection of pension providers in relation to Defined Contribution (“DC”) pension pots where the assets were unclaimed and the member was past normal retirement age for the scheme. According to the information provided at that time, there were 11,666 as yet unclaimed policies with a value of approximately €965 million. It is important to note that just because an asset is unclaimed past the normal retirement age for the scheme, this does not mean the asset is ‘lost’. It may mean that the member has not yet retired and may contact the scheme provider at a later stage when the member decides to drawdown their benefits.

Unclaimed benefits within occupational pension schemes can remain in the scheme indefinitely. Such funds remain there in trust for the member.

Unclaimed personal pension funds and PRSAs established with an insurance undertaking are subject to the Unclaimed Life Assurance Policies Act 2003. Where the policy owner cannot be traced, those funds are transferred to the Dormant Accounts Fund. The Dormant Accounts Fund is part of a framework for the administration of unclaimed accounts. Statutory functions related to the Fund are held by me in my capacity as the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht.

If a person believes that they may have an unclaimed pension entitlement, they should, in the first instance, contact their former employers and/or pension scheme providers. Where the administrator of a pension scheme or a life company is unable to trace a member using their own resources, they can use my Department’s ‘Host Mailing Service’ (‘HMS’). As per the HMS protocol, the pension provider must have made an unsuccessful attempt to contact the scheme member. The HMS is a contact only service whereby my Department forwards a letter, which contains minimal information, to the last known address of a pension scheme member.

In June 2024, the then Minister for Finance tasked the Interdepartmental Pensions Reform and Taxation Group (IDPRTG), which is chaired by the Department of Finance, to examine the demand, and potential approaches, for a pension tracking system. The initial phase of this examination will involve engagement with private pension providers who manage and hold pensions data.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.