Figures in the FSCS annual report, released on 28 June, reveal 69,980 customers were paid out in the 2017/18 tax year.
These payments were financed by levies collected from 20,810 regulated financial services firms.
Total compensation payments were up £30m from the previous tax year.
Sipp claims on the rise
Self-invested personal pensions (Sipps) related claims climbed 7% to £112m, up from £105m in 2016/17.
FSCS chief executive Mark Neale said: “Just over a fifth of the claims we handled in 2017/18 arose from pensions advice – mainly relating to the transfer of retirement savings out of an occupational scheme into a Sipp with a view to making illiquid and risky investments.
“This rising tide of pension-related claims underlines the risks that consumers face as they make increasingly complex choices about financing retirement and, therefore, the importance of raising awareness of FSCS protection outside of deposits,” he said.
Levies go up
In a paper published on 1 May, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it is going ahead with implementing proposals that will require product providers to pay a quarter of the compensation costs which fall on advisers.
The FSCS also announced in May a £52m increase to its levy on life and pensions advisers, with the total levy for the 2018/19 tax year being £407m.
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