If you have been advised to invest into a high-risk energy or environmental scheme as part of your SIPP, you may have been mis-sold. Find out if you are eligible for mis-sold SIPP compensation.

Putting our money into green investment schemes may seem like a good idea - help the planet and receive a return-on-investment when doing so. However, thousands of UK investors could have been misled in relation to both the investment scheme’s green credentials and the high-risk nature of the scheme.

More than half of the money invested in Europe in 2020 went into “sustainable” funds, taking a total of £1 trillion. However, many of these investments are unregulated, illiquid, and highly complex - not suitable for the average investor.

Retail investors are putting money into these energy and environmental schemes via their SIPP. This is after being advised by their financial advisor and SIPP provider despite it not being suitable. If you have lost money due to investing your pension into an environmentally friendly investment scheme, you could be owed mis-sold SIPP compensation.

Our panel of mis-sold SIPP solicitors can look at your case and inform you as to whether you are eligible to claim. Use our free eligibility checker below to start.

Why are Energy and Environmental Schemes high-risk investments?

There is a growing awareness of environmental issues among investors, financial institutions and asset managers. These leads to an increase of activity within the investment industry. While many of these schemes are legitimate, many are jumping on the green bandwagon and “greenwashing” investment schemes.

These schemes are often unregulated and set up overseas. They are highly complex schemes with multiple moving parts, all of which can go wrong. These schemes include creating tree plantations that produce oil, which can then be turned into a biofuel, or plantations abroad for sustainable crop growth.

However, many factors can mean these schemes fail, including adverse weather conditions, and the political turmoil in many of the places they are created, including Africa and Southeast Asia.

Energy and Environmental investment schemes are also illiquid. This means it is very hard to take your money out of the scheme once it has been invested. For anyone over the age of 50 who is thinking about retiring, this is clearly unsuitable.

What are the examples of high-risk Energy and Environmental investments?

Our mis-sold SIPP panel members see a handful of similar investments crop up, time and time again. These investments include:

• Solar Panel Schemes
• Wind Turbines
• Green Energy Schemes
• Green Oil
• Carbon Credits
• Green Energy Schemes
• Biofuel Investments

Some schemes that have made headlines recently include:

• Green Oil Plantation - An investment scheme that funded tree plantations in Australia. The Milletia trees would be used to create fuel for agricultural machinery. £24 million was invested, with the salespeople getting a massive 15% of that. The company went bankrupt, leaving 1,100 people out of pocket
• Sustainable AgroEnergy - A fund that was concerned with biofuel produced on a Cambodian plantation. It was shut down after a Serious Fraud Office investigation, and individuals involved were jailed in the UK. Millions of pounds were lost.
• Elysian Fuel - Part of a bioethanol plant in Grimsby with over £200 million invested. Ultimately, the plant failed, and investors lost their money
• Aegis Power Bond - Marketed as a great investment and a way for people to help the UK to generate renewable green energy through wind farms. The scheme went into liquidation in 2019.

If you have been advised to invest into any of the above green and/or environmentally friendly investment schemes, you could be owed compensation. You may not actually be aware that you have been misled, or the scheme may not have even failed yet. Our panel of experts can tell you whether you have a claim.

How could I have been mis-sold my Energy or Environmental scheme?

Our panel of expert mis-sold SIPP solicitors regularly see certain trends in these cases. Every case is different, but generally, these are the factors they consider when determining whether you have a valid claim or not:

• You have lost some or most of your pension value
• You can't "get out" of the investment (your investment is illiquid)
• The investment is not increasing in value
• The IFA who advised you to invest is not responding to communication
• The investment is decreasing in value
• The investment has not materialised -for example, construction was never finished
• The investment is higher risk than you thought
• The investment scheme operator is not responding to communication
• You were "cold-called", had someone knock on your door, or you responded to an online ad
• You were offered a cash incentive to invest
• The investment scheme operator in administration
• The IFA firm that advised you is in administration
• You were encouraged to invest in a SIPP despite a pension value of less than £100,000
• The investment guaranteed or promised higher returns than normal (over 7.5% PA)

Is there a time limit for mis-sold SIPP claims?

Yes, there are time limits for these types of mis-sold investment claims. These time limits are:

• Six years from when you were mis-sold the SIPP investment, or.
• Three years from the time you became aware of the mis-sold SIPP

To avoid being time-barred in any way, our panel would recommend getting in touch as soon as you are aware of any potential wrongdoing. They will investigate every potential path to get your pension back.

How much money can you receive for a mis-sold Energy/Environmental Scheme investment claim?

Every claim of this nature is different, and our panel of experts will discuss your individual claim with you. If the financial firm you are claiming against has failed after a number of claims against it, the FSCS can award up to £85,000 per person, per claim. Our panel members will talk you through exactly how much they will look to recover.

How can ClaimExperts.co.uk Help?

Are you concerned about your SIPP investment into an energy and environmental investment scheme? Are you worried that you have lost money due to negligent advice from your financial advisor or SIPP provider? Let our panel of expert SIPP solicitors help.

If you have lost money by transferring your pension into a SIPP which was then used to invest into an energy or environmental investment scheme, the panel at ClaimeExperts.co.uk can help get your money back. Even if you have not lost significant amounts, you still could have been mis-sold your SIPP. Contact our expert panel today to find out if you are eligible to claim.

Important Information

Fairweather Claims Ltd t/a ClaimExperts.co.uk do not give legal advice. You do not need to use a claims management company to make a claim. You have the right to use the relevant Ombudsman to seek redress for free. More information on your particular Ombudsman can be found on our Terms & Conditions. You can also seek legal advice elsewhere.

The No Win No Fee Success Fee is based on which expert panel member we refer you to and is payable to them. Our panel currently consists of a number of law firms, which can also be found on our Terms & Conditions. The No Win, No Fee varies, but is generally between 25%- 50%+VAT.

There may be a termination fee if you cancel your claim with a panel member after the cooling-off period. We are paid a referral fee by our panel members for a successful introduction. Fairweather Claims Ltd will not charge you for our service.