Forestry and Land Investment SIPP Claims
Nadeem Pervazis a solicitor at Edward & Amaury Solicitors, a law firm authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Content is reviewed for legal accuracy and compliance with FCA guidance and SRA conduct standards.
TL;DR — Quick Summary
- ▸Forestry, farmland, land banking and plantation investments placed into SIPPs were high-risk, illiquid, unregulated assets — unsuitable for pension investment.
- ▸Land banking was particularly problematic: the anticipated planning permissions rarely came, and many schemes were fraudulent.
- ▸Claims can be brought against the adviser, the SIPP operator, or both; FSCS claims may be available where those firms have since failed.
- ▸Many promoter companies and advisory firms have since collapsed.
- ▸Time limits apply — seek advice promptly.
Forestry investments, farmland schemes, plantation projects, and land banking arrangements were marketed to pension investors as tangible, asset-backed opportunities — a supposedly safe alternative to stocks and shares. In practice, they were illiquid, unregulated assets that were entirely unsuitable for most SIPP investors. Many have since failed, and investors have lost significant pension savings as a result.
Quick Answer
If your SIPP held forestry, land banking, farmland or plantation investments, you may have a claim against the adviser and/or the SIPP operator. FSCS claims may be available if those firms have since failed. Contact us for a free assessment.
Common Forestry and Land SIPP Schemes
A wide variety of land-backed investments were placed into SIPPs. Common structures included:
- Managed forestry schemes — investors purchased a plot of forest, managed by a third-party operator, with returns promised from the eventual sale of timber. Many operated in the UK, Eastern Europe, or Central America.
- Teak and tropical hardwood plantations — investments in teak, mahogany or other slow-growing hardwoods in Africa, Asia or Latin America, with long-term returns promised from timber sales on maturity.
- Agricultural and farmland investments — fractional interests in farmland, sometimes offshore, marketed as income-producing through rental to farmers.
- Land banking — purchasing small plots of greenfield land in the expectation that planning permission would be granted. This was among the most controversial SIPP investment types and was the subject of FCA and Serious Fraud Office attention.
- Conservation and rewilding land — later schemes marketed with environmental credentials, including carbon sequestration benefits.
Land Banking — A Particularly High-Risk Category
FCA and SFO Warnings on Land Banking
The FCA and Serious Fraud Office have repeatedly warned about land banking schemes. Many sites were sold in plots that were never granted planning permission — and never realistically could be. Some promoters were prosecuted for fraud. Investors who were advised to place land banking investments in their SIPPs were in many cases victims of mis-selling and, in some cases, fraud.
SIPP Operator Liability
As with other unregulated SIPP investments, SIPP operators who accepted forestry, land or land banking investments into SIPPs without adequate due diligence may be liable. Case law — including the Supreme Court decision in Adams v Options — has established that SIPP operators owe duties to members and can be responsible where they accepted clearly unsuitable non-standard assets.