Appealing your D&B failure score
If you want to know more about your Failure Score, probability of insolvency or DUNS number, you should contact D&B directly on 0870 850 6209.

Schemes can appeal within 28 days of the date of the invoice.

If you want to appeal your Failure Score you must do so in writing by emailing  customerhelp@dnb.com, quoting ‘PPF’ in the subject line. You can only appeal against D&B’s use of information that was publicly available at one of D&B’s standard sources (or presented directly to D&B) before 31 March 2010. Any information that was not publicly available from those sources at that time or presented to D&B before that time will not be taken into account in your appeal.

You should make it clear to D&B that you wish to appeal the Failure Score and quote the employer’s DUNS number (this can be found on your levy invoice). They will conduct your appeal in accordance with the new streamlined three stage process. This combines what was previously two customer service review steps into one, and two scoring specialist reviews into one, and gives schemes the benefit of a more rapid escalation of their appeals to senior levels within D&B.

You have 28 days from the date on your Pension Protection Levy invoice to appeal your score with D&B. You do not have to wait to receive your invoice to lodge an appeal, you can find out your 31 March 2010 Failure Score and lodge an appeal prior to receiving your invoice.

Should your appeal be rejected at either stage one or two, you have a maximum of 28 days to escalate your appeal to the next level. If exceptional circumstances prevent this, you should contact D&B and be prepared to provide evidence as to why. We have instructed D&B that they should not generally regard any of the following as amounting to exceptional circumstances:

• Poor scheme management
• Administrative failure
• The planned absence of trustees or their advisers.

Querying and reviewing your scheme-based levy or underfunding risk calculation
If you think the PPF has made a mistake when calculating your scheme-based levy or the underfunding element of your risk-based levy, you should contact our Stakeholder Support Team within 28 days of the date of the invoice on 0845 600 2541 or at levyinvoice@ppf.gsi.gov.uk.

Most issues with invoices can be resolved by raising a query, but you also have the option of a formal review. If you query your invoice after the 28 day deadline, we will still respond to your query, although you may be too late to apply for a formal review.

Formal reviews 
The calculation of a levy invoice is considered to be a ‘reviewable matter’ under section 207 of the Pensions Act 2004. The formal review process considers whether the PPF has followed the rules of the determination when calculating your levy.

We consult annually on the levy rules and anyone with an interest in the PPF can respond. if you do not receive email news updates from us, please register to do so.

The formal review process does not cover your D&B failure score, which is not determined by the PPF, but is an independent measure used by the PPF. You can only appeal your failure score with D&B, as outlined above.

When raising a query, please ensure that you quote your scheme name and invoice number so that we can identify your scheme correctly. You can only appeal against the PPF’s use of information that was submitted to the PPF or the Regulator on or before 31 March 2010. Any information that wasn’t submitted at that time will not be taken into account in your review. Most issues with invoices can be resolved by an invoice query.

How to request a formal review
Information on the statutory requirements for a review application can be found in our booklet How We Deal With Your Complaints and Concerns.

To request a review, you will need to complete a Levy Review Application Form.

Formal pension protection levy review applications must:

• be raised by a trustee, or authorised representative
• include your scheme name and invoice number
• be raised within 28 days of the date on your invoice or the conclusion of an invoice query (unless you can show that it was reasonable for the application to be made late and that the application was made within a reasonable period)
• not be about your D&B failure score or probability of insolvency, and
• not be about the underlying formula, or methodology used to calculate the levy or the policy underlying the Determination.

A hard copy of the document must be sent to the PPF for your review to be accepted as a formal review. An emailed copy will be treated as a formal review. An emailed copy will be treated as an invoice query until a hard copy is received.

If you are not satisfied with the result of your formal review, it is possible to appeal first to the PPF’s Reconsideration Committee and ultimately to the Pension Protection Fund Ombudsman. Each body will consider only whether the rules set out in the determination have been correctly applied, and has no power to modify or depart from those rules.

Contact Details

PPF
PPF Stakeholder Support Team - 0845 600 2541 (textphone 0845 600 2542)
levyinvoice@ppf.gsi.gov.uk for levy invoice queries
reviews@ppf.gsi.gov.uk for formal reviews

D&B
www.dnb.co.uk
Pension Protection Fund related queries: 0870 850 6209
customerhelp@dnb.com (Quote 'PPF' in the subject line)

D&B Customer Services
Marlow International Parkway
Marlow
Bucks
SL7 1AJ