Some 16% of defined contribution pension schemes with under £100m in assets scrutinised by The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has opted to wind up after a pilot into the effectiveness of its new rules on value for members.

Regulations, which came into force in October 2021, require trustees of schemes with less than £100m in assets to undertake a more detailed assessment of value for members than larger schemes.

Those failing to deliver value must set out a plan to improve or transfer members to a better-value scheme.

The initial pilot sample of hybrid scheme tested how the new regulations were faring.

Following the initial pilot, the TPR said it would be scrutinising information from all small defined contribution scheme returns with the potential for fines to be issued for non-compliance.

Mel Charles, interim director for frontline regulation at The Pensions Regulator, said: “Where trustees are found to be in breach of their duties on value, we’ll want to understand how they’ll improve. But, if they can’t or won’t, we expect them to transfer members to a better-value scheme and consider winding up their scheme.

“It is encouraging that our initiative has shown schemes are now actively choosing to wind up in the face of the new regulations.”

During the pilot the TPR said it had fined a corporate trustee £12,500.

As part of his Spring Budget, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced that new powers will be given to the TPR and the Financial Conduct Authority to ensure better value from defined contribution schemes by judging performance on overall returns, rather than cost alone, as part of a value for money (VFM) framework.

The Government confirmed it will legislate at the earliest opportunity to apply the VFM framework across the market and provide the TPR with new powers to ensure key disclosures are in place by 2027.