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Claim Compensation for Portal Financial Services Pension Advice

Compensation Adviser, a claims management company, helps people affected by potentially unsuitable Portal Financial Services pension transfer advice explore a complaint through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme — on a no-win, no-fee basis.

Portal Financial Services LLP, formerly Portafina, entered compulsory liquidation on 18 January 2023 and is listed by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) as a failed firm.¹ If you transferred a pension after Portal or Portafina advice, an FSCS claim may be possible, subject to the facts of your case, eligibility and applicable time limits.

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Why Choose Compensation Adviser?

Compensation Adviser is a claims management company. We can review the documents behind a Portal or Portafina pension transfer, explain the potential complaint route and help you decide what to do next. You do not need to use us to make a claim: the FSCS is free to use, and the decision on eligibility and compensation is always the FSCS’s.

No Obligation

Discuss your Portal or Portafina pension paperwork before deciding how to proceed.

Fair Fees

If we take on a successful claim, our fee is 15% + VAT of compensation awarded.

Free Review

Ask for a no-obligation review of your pension-transfer documents and correspondence.

What Was Portal Financial Services?

Portal Financial Services LLP is the firm recorded by Companies House under number OC344297. It previously traded as Portafina LLP, and the FSCS identifies the firm as formerly Portafina LLP.² ¹

Portal entered compulsory liquidation on 18 January 2023. The FSCS lists it as a failed firm and provides a direct online route for people who think they may have a claim. The FCA Register also records Portal under firm reference number 501272 and says it can no longer provide regulated activities and products.¹ ³

Firm failure does not by itself mean that every customer has a claim. The relevant question is whether the pension advice, transfer or investment recommendation was suitable for your individual circumstances, and whether the FSCS can consider the claim.

How Were You Advised or Transferred?

You may have met a Portafina adviser after a pension review, discussed moving a workplace, defined-benefit or personal pension, and then received a recommendation to transfer to a SIPP or another private pension arrangement. Your file may include a fact-find, risk questionnaire, suitability report, transfer forms, pension illustrations, fee documents and investment information.

Published Financial Ombudsman Service decisions concerning individual Portal/Portafina complaints have considered transfers from defined-benefit occupational pensions and personal pensions into SIPPs. Those decisions are examples of the issues an ombudsman reviewed in those individual cases; they do not determine what should happen in anyone else’s case.⁴ ⁵

Why Might the Advice Have Been Unsuitable?

Pension-transfer advice must be considered against your aims, financial circumstances, investment knowledge, attitude to risk and capacity for loss at the time. A transfer can also mean giving up valuable features, such as guaranteed income or other benefits available in an existing pension arrangement.

In published decisions about individual Portafina cases, the Ombudsman considered matters including whether the client could realistically bear investment loss, whether the charges and objectives justified a transfer, whether the proposed SIPP investments had been assessed as part of the overall advice, and whether the client understood the risks. These are not automatic grounds for a claim, but they may be relevant questions if they apply to your own paperwork.⁴ ⁵

The FCA says that, in most cases, keeping a defined-benefit pension is in a person’s best interests. Its advice checker explains what changed when a defined-benefit pension was transferred and how to complain if the advice may have been unsuitable.⁶

Signs Your Portal or Portafina Pension Advice May Have Been Unsuitable

These signs do not prove a claim. They may, however, indicate that it is worth checking your pension-transfer paperwork and the free FSCS route.

You were advised to transfer a defined-benefit, final-salary, workplace or personal pension into a SIPP or private pension arrangement.

You were not given a clear comparison of the pension benefits, guarantees or employer contributions you could lose by transferring.

The advice recommended investments that seemed more risky or less accessible than you understood or could afford to lose.

Your circumstances showed limited savings, investment experience or capacity to absorb pension losses, yet you were assessed as able to take substantial investment risk.

Initial, ongoing adviser, SIPP or investment charges were not clearly explained or did not appear justified by your objectives.

You were encouraged to rely on a pension review or transfer without receiving a clear explanation of why remaining in the existing pension was not suitable.

What to Do If You Believe Your Portal or Portafina Pension Was Mis-sold

Gather your records

Keep suitability reports, fact-finds, transfer-value statements, SIPP paperwork, investment documents, fee schedules, annual statements and any complaint correspondence.

Identify the advice and transfer

Note whether Portal/Portafina advised on a defined-benefit transfer, a personal pension transfer, a SIPP or the intended investments. Record approximate dates and the firm reference number where available.

Check the free FSCS route

The FSCS lists Portal as a failed firm and has a direct eligibility checker. You do not need a claims management company or solicitor to make an FSCS claim.

Make your own claim if you wish

Submit information to FSCS directly and keep copies of what you send. FSCS will decide whether it can consider the claim and whether compensation is payable.

Preserve responses and deadlines

Keep any final response, FSCS acknowledgement, FOS correspondence or decision. Time limits and the appropriate route depend on the facts, so act promptly and check the official guidance.

Request a no-obligation review

If you would like help understanding the paperwork or deciding whether to use a representative, ask Compensation Adviser for a no-obligation review. You remain free to use the FSCS route yourself at no charge.

Can I Claim Compensation for Portal or Portafina Pension Advice?

Because Portal Financial Services is a failed firm, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme may be the relevant route for a pension-advice complaint. The FSCS says customers with claims relating to British Steel Pension Scheme transfer advice, defined-benefit pension transfer advice from other occupational schemes, and other matters can start a claim. Whether your claim is eligible, and whether any compensation is due, depends on the facts and is decided by the FSCS.¹

It is free to claim directly through FSCS. Its Portal page expressly says that you do not need a claims company or solicitor to make a claim. If your complaint was already with the Financial Ombudsman Service when Portal failed, follow the instructions you receive from FOS or FSCS. A different route may apply to a still-trading firm or to a separate pension-provider or scheme-administration dispute, so do not assume that one route fits every issue.

Why Choose Compensation Adviser for Your Portal or Portafina Claim?

Pension-document review: We can help you identify the advice, transfer and investment records that may matter.
Clear route explanation: We explain the potential role of FSCS and the fact that you can make a free direct claim yourself.
Cautious, fact-specific assessment: We do not treat a published FOS decision or firm failure as proof of a personal claim.
Transparent fees: If we recover money for you, our fee is 15% + VAT of the total compensation awarded; if no money is recovered, there is no fee to pay.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I claim compensation from Portal Financial Services or Portafina?

An FSCS claim may be possible because Portal is listed as a failed firm. Eligibility, the scope of any protection and whether compensation is due are matters for FSCS to decide. A firm failure or a published decision does not mean that every customer has a successful claim.

Do I need to use Compensation Adviser to claim from FSCS?

No. The FSCS is free to use and says you do not need a claims company or solicitor to make a claim. You can use its online route directly and keep all of any compensation you receive. You may choose to ask us for help, but using us is optional.

What paperwork should I look for?

Start with the suitability report, fact-find, risk questionnaire, transfer forms, pension illustrations, fee documents, SIPP and investment statements, and communications from Portal/Portafina. Missing paperwork does not necessarily prevent you from contacting FSCS, but the available records can be important.

Does this apply only to defined-benefit pension transfers?

Not necessarily. Public FOS decisions about individual Portal/Portafina complaints have considered both defined-benefit and personal-pension transfers into SIPPs. Whether the FSCS can consider your own claim depends on the advice, the firm’s role and your individual circumstances.

What if I had a complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service?

FSCS says that, if you already had a Portal complaint with FOS, you do not need to take action immediately and FOS will tell you the next step. Keep your correspondence and follow official instructions.

What are your fees?

We operate on a no-win, no-fee basis. If your claim is successful, we charge a fee of 15% + VAT of the total compensation awarded. If we do not recover any money for you, there is no fee to pay.

Ready to Start Your Portal Financial Services Claim Review?

Important Information

You are not required to use our services to pursue your claim. You can also seek further advice or shop around subject to any time limits within which a claim must be made.

It is possible for you to present the claim for free, either to the bank, business or person against whom you wish to complain or to the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, whichever is applicable to your claim.