--- title: Insights | Punter Southall | Tuff one for Smiths News (to take) description: Richard Jones, Managing Director of Punter Southall, Fat not fags? image: https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/Delivery%20driver%20driving%20van%20with%20parcels%20on%20seat%20outside%20the%20warehouse.jpeg --- - [ Our services ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-services) - [ Pensions ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions) - [ Defined benefit ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/defined-benefits) - [ Defined contribution ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions#defined-contribution) - [ SIPP & SSAS ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions#self-invested-pensions) - [ Expert witness ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/expert-witness) - [ Analytics ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics) - [ Numbers for lawyers ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics#numbers-for-lawyers) - [ Data compliance ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics#data-compliance-for-data-confidence) - [ Legal ](https://puntersouthall.law/) - [ Employee benefits ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/service-update-apr-24) - [ Financial planning ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/service-update-apr-24) - [ Insights ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights) - [ Blogs ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights) - [ Our story ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-story) - [ People & culture ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/people-culture) - [ Our people ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/staff-directory) - [ Awards ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/awards) - [ Careers ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/careers) - [ Contact us ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/contact) [![Punter Southall - Animated icon](https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/punter-southall-hc/library/images/client/logos/punter_southall_anim_logo.gif) ![Punter Southall - Text logo](https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/punter-southall-hc/library/images/client/logos/punter_southall_text_logo.svg) ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/) ** ** ** - [ Our services ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-services) - [ Pensions ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions) - [ Defined benefit ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/defined-benefits) - [ Defined contribution ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions#defined-contribution) - [ SIPP & SSAS ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/pensions#self-invested-pensions) - [ Expert witness ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/expert-witness) - [ Analytics ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics) - [ Numbers for lawyers ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics#numbers-for-lawyers) - [ Data compliance ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/analytics#data-compliance-for-data-confidence) - [ Legal ** ](https://puntersouthall.law/) - [ Employee benefits ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/service-update-apr-24) - [ Financial planning ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/service-update-apr-24) - [ Insights ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights) - [ Blogs ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights) - [ Our story ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-story) - [ People & culture ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/people-culture) - [ Our people ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/staff-directory) - [ Awards ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/awards) - [ Careers ** ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/careers) - [ Contact us ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/contact) - ** ** DB Pensions 3 December 2025 [** Back ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/) **Author:** Chris Parlour # Tuff one for Smiths News (to take)   Smiths News plc (“Smiths”) recently published preliminary result for the year ending 31 August 2025, reporting that it has spent a whopping £0.7 million in legal fees, simply responding to two requests for information from the Pensions Regulator (in October 2024 and June 2025). The requests relate to the Smiths’ ownership of Tuffnells Parcels Express Limited (“Tuffnells”), the failed corporate sponsor of the Tuffnells Parcels Express Pension Scheme (the “Scheme”). The Pensions Regulator has statutory powers to investigate the circumstances surrounding a scheme failure and to demand the provision of relevant documents from parties connected to, or like Smiths, previously connected to a scheme. Smiths purchased Tuffnells in 2014 for an initial consideration of £113.4 million. In 2020, Smiths sold Tuffnells to Broad Oak Support Services, a turnaround investor, for about £15 million, before Tuffnells entered administration on 12 June 2023. On the face of those simple facts, it appears that Smiths made a poor investment and cannot reasonable be held responsible for Tuffnell’s failure or the Scheme’s current predicament and hence doesn’t deserve further punishment. However, that likely oversimplifies the position - the Pensions Regulator clearly believed it had good reason to dig deeper. Tuffnells latest filed accounts before its insolvency, covering the year ending 31 December 2021, reported that the Scheme held assets of £11.7 million and that Tuffnells had been committed to contribute £0.5 million per annum to remove the funding deficit reported at the last formal actuarial valuation as at 1 April 2019. The Pensions Regulator has told Smiths that the Scheme had an estimated s75 liability of £3.355 million, which represents the maximum penalty that the Pensions Regulator is likely to seek to impose. Smiths report that *“With support of legal advice, the Board maintains the view that the Company has acted reasonably throughout its time as parent of Tuffnells and notes that it was an overall net contributor of funding to Tuffnells during its period of ownership.” *Smiths will likely not find out what the Pensions Regulator thinks until 20 February 2026, the reported statutory deadline for issuing a Warning Notice, which will force the Pensions Regulator into revealing its hand. Even if nothing further comes of the Pensions Regulator’s investigation, the mere fact that it examined Smiths’ role has already cost it £0.7 million, which is indicative of the costs and risks that a DB schemes can present in corporate transactions. On the plus side, Smiths reported a £1.5 million refund for an overpayment of tax it paid on a refund of surplus it received from the News Section of the WH Smith Pension Trust during FY2022. Smiths was previously reported to have paid £5.1 million in tax, on a pre-tax surplus of £14.8 million. It is not clear to us from the publicly available data how or why this transpired to be too much, but it will no doubt have come as a welcome boost to Smiths.   ----- We hope you've found this article of interest. If you'd like to discuss it, or any other matters where we may be able to assist you, please contact Chris Parlour on Chris.Parlour@puntersouthall.com[mailto:david.rankin@puntersouthallgroup.com](mailto:david.rankin@puntersouthallgroup.com)   Share [** ](mailto:?subject=Tuff%20one%20for%20Smiths%20News%20(to%20take)&body=https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-tuff-one-for-smiths-news-to-take) [** ](http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Tuff%20one%20for%20Smiths%20News%20(to%20take)&url=https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-tuff-one-for-smiths-news-to-take) [** ](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-tuff-one-for-smiths-news-to-take) [** ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-tuff-one-for-smiths-news-to-take) [** Back ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/) ### Get in touch today At Punter Southall, we have a team of highly skilled pensions, risk, compliance and legal experts with deep in-house practical experience. Get in touch if you would like a friendly chat with one of us. Get in touch** - LATEST UPDATES ## You may also be interested in [DB Pensions ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-pension-costs-seem-set-to-rise) - 22 October 2025 [Pension costs seem set to rise….](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-pension-costs-seem-set-to-rise) [Read article](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-pension-costs-seem-set-to-rise) [DB Pensions ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-life-is-shorter) - 4 November 2025 [Life is shorter](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-life-is-shorter) [Read article](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-life-is-shorter) [DB Pensions ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-the-future-of-the-ppf) - 8 October 2025 [The Future of the PPF](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-the-future-of-the-ppf) [Read article](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-the-future-of-the-ppf) - ###### INSIGHTS #### Subscribe to updates Where we share what we’re thinking about and what conclusions can be drawn on everything from the work we do to the world around us. We hope you find our posts readable, relevant and thought-provoking. Subscribe ** ##### Subscribe to updates Insights ![Footer graphic](https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/punter-southall-hc/library/images/client/shapes/footer-graphic.svg) ###### Let’s work together - [Our services](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-services) - [Insights](https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights) - [Our story](https://www.puntersouthall.com/our-story) - [People & culture](https://www.puntersouthall.com/people-culture) - [Careers](https://www.puntersouthall.com/careers) [** ](https://twitter.com/PunterSouthall) [** ](https://www.linkedin.com/company/1241357) © Punter Southall 2024 - [Terms of use](https://www.puntersouthall.com/terms) - [Privacy ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/privacy-policy) - [Cookies ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/cookie-policy) - [Acceptable use ](https://www.puntersouthall.com/acceptable-use-policy) - [Modern slavery statement](https://www.puntersouthall.com/modern-slavery) - [Data Complaints](https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/Data%20Complaints.pdf) Website by [Harrison Carloss](https://harrisoncarloss.com/) © 2024 Punter Southall Group This website is maintained for general circulation and is intended to provide information only. It is not intended to be construed as a solicitation for the sale of any particular investment or as investment advice and does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and particular needs of any person by whom it is read. Tax treatment will depend upon individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. Please also note that the value of investments, and /or the income from them, can fall as well as rise so you may get back less than you invested. The past performance of an investment should not be relied upon as a guide to its future performance. Comment and opinion on this website is based on tax year figures in the year written and there is no updating to the current tax year. Punter Southall Group is a trading name of Punter Southall Group Limited. Registered office: 11 Strand, London WC2N 5HR. Registered in England and Wales No. 4096788. This website contains information provided by or about Punter Southall Group and its group companies. Details of such group companies are provided at http://www.puntersouthall.com/our-businesses-legal-information. Punter Southall SIPP Limited (FRN: 189480) and Punter Southall Defined Contribution Consulting Limited (FRN: 121328) are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Chris Parlour", "url" : "https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/author/chris-parlour" }, "dateModified" : "2025-12-03T12:44:02.783Z", "datePublished" : "2025-12-03T12:44:02.000Z", "headline" : "Insights | Punter Southall | Tuff one for Smiths News (to take)", "image" : [ "https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/Delivery%20driver%20driving%20van%20with%20parcels%20on%20seat%20outside%20the%20warehouse.jpeg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.puntersouthall.com/insights/insights-punter-southall-tuff-one-for-smiths-news-to-take", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.puntersouthall.com/hubfs/Logos/punter-southall-horizontal-RGB.svg" }, "name" : "Punter Southall" } } ```