The development of the Pensions Dashboard has been one of the big pension related stories of 2016 – with the Treasury signing up eleven of the largest pension providers to build the first prototype of its kind in the UK.

Not-for-profit fintech firm Origo has been working on creating a live dashboard model for some time.

Below, Paul Pettitt, managing director of Origo, says security and safety, including work on identity verification, is vital to success of pensions dashboard as a key next stage looms in March. 

He explains what he believes is needed now to make it a reality. 

The Pensions Dashboard continues to gather momentum and Origo firmly believes that Fintech and pension providers can help deliver a dashboard prototype for the March 2017 deadline set by Treasury, writes Paul Pettitt.

The industry will then have a further two years to meet the 2019 deadline to have in place an operational system open to consumers.

In fact, the industry has been ahead of the curve in responding to dashboard requirements. Several companies having been working on the front-end technology to deliver the screen the consumer sees and on which they enter their data request. In addition, Origo has built and demonstrated to the industry a data engine* able to sit behind the dashboard screen (or screens as there may be more than one) and enable the pension finder requests from consumers to be securely transmitted to pension providers and the relevant data securely delivered back to the dashboard.

This engine needs to be a cost effective, not-for-profit utility, that can be trusted to link each dashboard with each provider to create a seamless, reliable service to the end consumer, giving them the details of their pensions.

The Origo demonstration of a live dashboard feed using the data engine included finding the pensions policies as well as returning their valuations, which is perhaps the most critical component of dashboards if consumers are to understand and engage with their pensions.

With the change in Government personnel, the DWP and Treasury following the Brexit vote, there were concerns that dashboard might lose some of its momentum. Those concerns were proven groundless. Treasury has challenged the industry to deliver the dashboard prototype by March and building on the work undertaken by Origo and the Pension Finder Alpha Group earlier this year, has brought us to the stage where the ABI has now picked up the baton and is working with a group of 11 providers** to develop the pensions dashboard prototype.

Origo has been helping to deliver the open standards required as well as having input into the architecture stream of the project.

Alongside the data engine and dashboard screen design, the other pieces of the jigsaw that will see a dashboard delivered on time are governance and the digital ID verification process. The latter is key to the success of the pensions dashboard. Identity verification and security must be sufficiently strong enough that the DWP is confident to provide state pension information to dashboards. Ensuring a safe and secure dashboard is also of utmost importance if consumers are to successfully use and engage with their pension information.

Governance includes the legal and commercial elements, as well as ensuring that not only is the system consumer friendly but that it enables them to accurately and cost-efficiently track down their UK pensions wherever they are held. Questions have been asked as to whether Government will legislate to ensure every pension provider and every pension (as far as possible) is accessible through dashboard. That will have to be seen. First stage has been for the progressive, forward-thinking providers to get on board, as they have. With political will driving the dashboard, there will be pressure on the rest of the industry to follow suit.

The significant next stage is to get the prototype up and running. The industry has access to the technology to enable a prototype to be ready for the March 2017 deadline and Origo will do everything it can to help the industry meet that deadline.

The commitment and work of Treasury, the ABI, and other industry bodies to deliver dashboard for consumers, combined with the significant support in the pensions industry and among Fintech companies like Origo, I believe has created a momentum that will see an operational dashboard delivered for the 2019 live date as wanted by Government.

* Origo was tasked by major pension providers to deliver a low-cost, simple and secure capability to safely populate consumer-facing Pensions Dashboards. That system was demonstrated in July 2016. The providers included Aegon, Ageas, Aviva, AXA Wealth, Friends Life, Just Retirement, MetLife, Legal & General, Prudential, Royal London, Scottish Widows, Standard Life, Unum and Zurich.

** The Treasury secured agreement from eleven of the largest pension providers - Aviva, Aon, HSBC, LV=, NEST, Now: Pensions, People’s Pension, Royal London, Standard Life, Zurich and Willis Towers Watson - to build the first prototype of its kind in the UK