Financial Mis-Selling Time Limits — Am I Too Late to Claim?

The three rules you need to know

UK courts apply three separate limits to mis-selling claims. If one has expired, another may still open the door. The safest step is to check the specific facts rather than assume the earliest deadline binds you.

Rule 1 — The six-year rule (Section 2, Limitation Act 1980)

You have six years from the date of the breach — typically when the investment was sold or the advice given — to bring a court claim. If that window has closed, Rule 2 may still apply.

Example: SIPP sold in 2018 → the six-year window runs to 2024.

Rule 2 — The three-year "date of knowledge" rule (Section 14A)

Even if six years have passed, you have three years from when you first knew — or ought reasonably to have known — that:

• you suffered a loss;
• that loss was caused by the advice or product; and
• the advice or product was wrong or unsuitable.

Rule 3 — The fifteen-year long-stop (Section 14B)

Section 14B imposes an absolute 15-year cut-off from the date of breach, regardless of knowledge. Advice given before 2009 may fall outside this limit. Where relevant facts were deliberately concealed, Section 32 can postpone the start of the limitation period until the concealment was — or could have been — discovered.

FOS time limits

The Financial Ombudsman Service applies its own deadlines under FCA DISP rules. In general you must refer a complaint to FOS within six years of the event OR three years from first awareness — whichever is later. You must complain to the firm first and allow eight weeks to respond. Once the firm issues a final response, you normally have just six months to bring the complaint to FOS. That six-month window is strict — a final response should never be ignored.

FSCS — no limitation period, but timing still matters

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme does not impose a limitation period. It pays eligible claims once a firm has been declared in default. In practice the relevant timing is tied to the firm's failure, not the date of your advice.

What counts as "date of knowledge"? Accepted triggers

Simply losing money does not start the clock. The question is when you knew — or ought to have known — that the loss was caused by mis-selling rather than market movement. Accepted triggers include:

• FSCS letter declaring your SIPP operator in default
• Media coverage of a mis-selling scandal involving your product
• Being contacted by another law firm or CMC about a potential claim
• FCA regulatory action against your adviser
• A significant, unexplained loss on your investment
• A pension review revealing your transfer was unsuitable
• Speaking to a new adviser who identified the original advice as wrong

SIPP and defined benefit pension claims — the PS22/13 scheme

The FCA's PS22/13 redress scheme (in force since 2022) requires firms to proactively contact affected DB transfer clients. Several SIPP operators active in the mis-selling era have been declared in default within the last five years — clients may still be within the Section 14A window:

The three routes at a glance

Three quick examples

Special situations

• British Steel (BSPS) and other DB transfers: members advised to transfer during a specific window may have particular deadlines and dedicated redress schemes.
• Ongoing advice and regular contributions: where advice was given on a continuing basis, the relevant date may be later than the first meeting.
• Acting for a relative: the same clocks apply, so an early check is sensible.
• Scottish clients: Scotland uses prescription rather than limitation — typically 5 years from when loss became apparent. FOS complaints follow UK-wide rules.

Referring a complaint or issuing court proceedings is what protects your position — simply thinking about claiming does not pause time.