North-Yorkshire brewery Samuel Smith has been fined almost £28,000 by Brighton Magistrates Court for failing to hand over information to The Pensions Regulator.
The decision closes a seven month dispute between the regulator and the brewery, which started in January when TPR asked the brewery for information on it’s financial situation in order to assess whether its pension schemes were adequately funded.
According to the regulator, the firm failed to do so within the two-week deadline set by the Pensions Act 2004, prompting TPR to launch criminal proceedings.
As the brewery and its chair Humphrey Smith pleaded guilty to the charges, magistrates fined Smith £8,000 and the brewery a £18,750 penalty, in addition to £1,240 in costs and victim surcharges.
District judge Teresa Szagun pointed out the company’s “very terse tone” in refusing to provide information and highlighted the need to stop individuals from obstructing TPR’s requests for information.
Nicola Parish, TPR’s executive director of frontline regulation, adds: “People who ignore our notices asking them to provide information should expect us to launch a criminal prosecution.
“As Mr Smith has discovered, becoming compliant with our requests after a court summons has been served will not halt criminal proceedings,” she said.
