Pension scam victims lose £34,000 on average – Unbiased

Pension scam victims lose around £34,000 on average, with fraudsters increasingly using sophisticated tactics to target people approaching or entering retirement, according to Unbiased.

Figures from The Pensions Regulator (TPR) cited by the financial advice platform showed pension fraud losses reached £17.5m.

Unbiased warned pension scammers can encourage people to transfer retirement savings into fraudulent schemes or access their pensions through illegitimate offers.

The findings come as investment and pension scams continue to cause substantial financial losses, with Britons losing more than £897m to the two types of fraud last year.

People aged between 55 and 64 suffered the greatest financial losses from investment scams, according to industry data cited by Unbiased.

Investment fraud alone accounted for £879.8m in reported losses during 2025, with criminals often impersonating legitimate investment firms or advisers and promising high returns with limited risk.

Unbiased said increasingly sophisticated digital fraud could make it more difficult for consumers to identify scams, with criminals using artificial intelligence(AI) to create realistic voice notes, videos and messages.

Impersonation scams can also involve fraudsters posing as banks, HMRC or other trusted organisations and creating a sense of urgency to persuade consumers to transfer money or disclose personal information.