# Anybody else having difficulties contacting Mercer?



## SlugBreath (30 Mar 2018)

I phoned this number today and I cannot even understand what their voice recorded message is saying. 6039700.

Their Payroll Enquiries phone number is NEVER answered by anybody when you phone it.

Their online "contact" form is awful.

I find them the most frustrating company ever to deal with......miles ahead of the usual suspects.


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## odyssey06 (30 Mar 2018)

Not a good day to try, am pretty sure they are closed today along with most financial institutions... hopefully you have better luck next week.


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## MrEarl (30 Mar 2018)

Hello,

My wife has had several bad experiences with them, when trying to deal with their pensions team, typically no one to take a call or have to chase them to action something that they should have done already etc.

Extremely poor service and if it wasn't for the fact that they are being paid by one of my wife's former employers, she'd have left them years ago  !

Anyone thinking of appointing them, should go elsewhere.


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## Bronco Lane (31 Mar 2018)

SlugBreath said:


> I phoned this number today and I cannot even understand what their voice recorded message is saying. 6039700.



This would be par for the course for Mercer. The message left on their answering machine is gobbledygook. Obviously no one bothers to check their own services to the public.



MrEarl said:


> My wife has had several bad experiences with them, when trying to deal with their pensions team, typically no one to take a call or have to chase them to action something that they should have done already etc.



When I had to deal with them it was a complete nightmare from start to finish. Unfortunately this month, my pension payment was taxed on emergency tax out of the blue. It has gone from no tax to more than half my payment taken in tax. No way to contact them. I absolutely dread the prospect of dealing with them when things get back to normal after the Easter.


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## llgon (31 Mar 2018)

MrEarl said:


> Anyone thinking of appointing them, should go elsewhere.



Any suggestions? Do they have much competition? Maybe that's the problem.


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## llgon (31 Mar 2018)

MrEarl said:


> Anyone thinking of appointing them, should go elsewhere.



Any suggestions? Do they have much competition? Maybe that's the problem.


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## IsleOfMan (31 Mar 2018)

Bronco Lane said:


> Unfortunately this month, my pension payment was taxed on emergency tax out of the blue.


Is it not normal if there is a change in your tax circumstances that the Revenue issues tax credit updates to both you *and* the company who is paying your pension payment? They should have applied the new Certificate of Tax Credits to your payment?

It doesn't make sense that Mercer would apply Emergency Tax, thus depriving you of more than half your pension payment?

Why would any company do this to someone?


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## MrEarl (31 Mar 2018)

llgon said:


> Any suggestions? Do they have much competition? Maybe that's the problem.



Obviously, much depends on the specific services you require.  In general, I think there is plenty of competition tbf, but Mercer seem to have a notable part of the Irish corporate customer base (perhaps they are cheap, or internationally they are well regarded ?)

Based on personal experiences, I'm happy to suggest either Invesco or Goodbody, but I'm sure there are lots of others that are equally good (I've just not had direct dealings with them).


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## JoeRoberts (2 Apr 2018)

I presume the OP has an occupational pension from a previous employer - if so will have no choice in who manages it.


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## llgon (2 Apr 2018)

Thanks Joe, though I wasn't suggesting that the OP had a choice. My question was in relation to employers appointing Mercer and the competition out there.  I have no experience myself of dealing with them but have not heard good reports. I think Mr Earl provides good advice to employers.


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## Laramie (3 Apr 2018)

IsleOfMan said:


> They should have applied the new Certificate of Tax Credits to your payment?



Oh! You will probably find that they missed the payroll cut off date or some useless and unhelpful comment like that. Probably sitting in someone's "in" basket.


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## Steven Barrett (3 Apr 2018)

llgon said:


> Thanks Joe, though I wasn't suggesting that the OP had a choice. My question was in relation to employers appointing Mercer and the competition out there.  I have no experience myself of dealing with them but have not heard good reports. I think Mr Earl provides good advice to employers.



There's plenty of competition in the corporate space. Mercer are a global firm though the the competition is somewhat reduced when it comes to managing schemes of multinationals. Companies like having their pensions managed by the same company worldwide and there's only a few in Ireland who can do that. 




Steven 
www.bluewaterfp.ie


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## MrEarl (3 Apr 2018)

SBarrett said:


> There's plenty of competition in the corporate space. Mercer are a global firm though the the competition is somewhat reduced when it comes to managing schemes of multinationals. Companies like having their pensions managed by the same company worldwide and there's only a few in Ireland who can do that.
> 
> Steven
> www.bluewaterfp.ie




Hello Steven,

Fair points alright, but it doesn't excuse very poor service.


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## JoeRoberts (3 Apr 2018)

Mercer will get countless calls everyday from people who worked in company X in 1985  They will have no scheme number or member no etc. They will not have kept their last correspondence  The company is likely closed now  amalgamated or scheme combined onto some other All these queries have to be handled too.


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## Steven Barrett (4 Apr 2018)

MrEarl said:


> Hello Steven,
> 
> Fair points alright, but it doesn't excuse very poor service.



No it's not. I wasn't trying to either. I was answering a question about the level of competition for large corporates.


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## Grizzly (4 Apr 2018)

JoeRoberts said:


> Mercer will get countless calls everyday from people who worked in company X in 1985 They will have no scheme number or member no etc. They will not have kept their last correspondence The company is likely closed now amalgamated or scheme combined onto some other All these queries have to be handled too.



They could start with having their phone number printed clearly on their Webpage.

https://www.mercer.ie/

Even on their "Contact us" section it is not available.


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## odyssey06 (4 Apr 2018)

Select "Contact Us", pick desired option... "Get assistance with my health or retirement benefits administered by Mercer "

Website updates with:
_You can call us from Ireland at 1890 275 275 or if you are calling from outside of Ireland please use our international number +353 1 411 8505. 
Alternatively you can email us at JustAsk@mercer.com
_
Not that tricky, at least on a desktop browser.


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## MrEarl (4 Apr 2018)

JoeRoberts said:


> Mercer will get countless calls everyday from people who worked in company X in 1985  They will have no scheme number or member no etc. They will not have kept their last correspondence  The company is likely closed now  amalgamated or scheme combined onto some other All these queries have to be handled too.



All very true.

Mercer are paid to provide services, so once they provide adequate staff and those staff do a good job, then there shouldn't be a problem... but, eh......


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## Steven Barrett (4 Apr 2018)

Just phoned them there on behalf of a client. On hold for a minute, spoke to someone, she put me through to the person looking after the scheme. All done and dusted in a 2-3 minutes. 


Steven
www.bluewaterfp.ie


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## nickkelly (20 Aug 2018)

my pension scheme got transferred to mercer 6 months ago, tried many many times to get information about my pension and join the online site one view, still to no avail, completely, utterly, and totally useless, if no joy today i'm going to complain through the ombudsman.
nick.


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## North Star (20 Aug 2018)

We have had similar experiences as Steven has had with several clients with Mercer.  These clients were unfortunately  INM pension scheme members and thus were caught up in the various Sect 50 orders and pension transfers etc so they weren't simple cases. 
In fairness to Mercer we found them very responsive and helpful when dealing with the various queries we had.


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## Odea (20 Aug 2018)

I found them absolutely appalling to deal with. They were not prepared to help in any way with my pension questions and only answered what they were asked. I found out most of the information that I needed from the helpful people on this site, Joe & Steven. Thank you.


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## moneymakeover (21 Aug 2018)

I also have found them totally unhelpful.

As if they were afraid of the consequences of giving wrong advice.

They eventually phoned me back and dids they could give one to one advice for €500.


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## Loobyloo (10 Dec 2018)

Yes having big problem with an agent getting any pension info out of mercer at all no letter no contact .This should have all been in place in November .Utter rubbish .Perhaps there isn't a pension pot !


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## SoylentGreen (4 Oct 2021)

I really hate having to contact Mercer.  A simple request has led to delays in their response....... eventually responding......then asking a number of security questions.......answers all provided......and then silence!    

Why can they not answer a simple question quickly?


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## noproblem (4 Oct 2021)

SoylentGreen said:


> I really hate having to contact Mercer.  A simple request has led to delays in their response....... eventually responding......then asking a number of security questions.......answers all provided......and then silence!
> 
> Why can they not answer a simple question quickly?


Without knowing the question it's very difficult to answer that  When it comes to personal finance, or anything that's requiring a specific answer, there's nothing simple anymore.


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## Paul O Mahoney (4 Oct 2021)

noproblem said:


> Without knowing the question it's very difficult to answer that  When it comes to personal finance, or anything that's requiring a specific answer, there's nothing simple anymore.


They've gone backwards,  my wife contacted they 2 weeks ago simply asking how can she add more AVC to her pension outside of payroll. 
They came back and asked her personal questions like employee number DOB and they have this information anyway and has had it since 1991 .
She even enquired via her personal portal. 

Its not a very good service now.


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## SoylentGreen (4 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> They came back and asked her personal questions like employee number DOB and they have this information anyway and has had it since 1991 .


Same questions to me.

I just want to know how I change some address details....


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## noproblem (4 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> They've gone backwards,  my wife contacted they 2 weeks ago simply asking how can she add more AVC to her pension outside of payroll.
> They came back and asked her personal questions like employee number DOB and they have this information anyway and has had it since 1991 .
> She even enquired via her personal portal.
> 
> Its not a very good service now.


Yes, it's annoying, but after all that, did they then answer your query?


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## Paul O Mahoney (4 Oct 2021)

noproblem said:


> Yes, it's annoying, but after all that, did they then answer your query?


Not yet,  but to be honest Ididnt ask her if she got a response or actually sent it. Better ask her actually


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## Tintagel (5 Oct 2021)

You can count me in as one of those people having difficulties getting a response from Mercer.  I asked them a question. It took them almost a month before responding. When they did, they only responded to part of the question asked. I then had to go back and ask them about the bit they left out.....another month.

I see Mercer UK have a complaints department. Do Mercer Ireland have a complaints department?


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## MugsGame (5 Oct 2021)

Sure, before I can process your complaint I'll need you to confirm your employee no., DoB and pension balance.


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## Paul O Mahoney (7 Oct 2021)

Tintagel said:


> You can count me in as one of those people having difficulties getting a response from Mercer.  I asked them a question. It took them almost a month before responding. When they did, they only responded to part of the question asked. I then had to go back and ask them about the bit they left out.....another month.
> 
> I see Mercer UK have a complaints department. Do Mercer Ireland have a complaints department?


My wife called the Irish number today no reply so, rang international number only to be answered by an Irish lad working in Ireland. 
He answered her question vaguely but still no response from 3emails sent over the last few weeks.


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## time to plan (7 Oct 2021)

I hope you’re all putting in Subject Access Requests.


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## Odea (8 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> They came back and asked her personal questions like employee number DOB and they have this information anyway and has had it since 1991 .
> She even enquired via her personal portal.


I was asked name and address, date of birth, employee number, date I joined company, date I left company, company employee number.

Difficult enough for me to find this information but eventually found it.  I emailed this information to them.

A week latter and I am contacted by a different person wanting....my name and address, date of birth, PPS number, the name of the scheme I retired from and receive pension benefits from.

I understand that they have to be careful but I don't understand why I was not asked all of the information in the first request. Why I had to wait a week to get a reply and to be asked the same information already supplied the week previously, plus additional information.

I always get the feeling from Mercer that they couldn't care less and nobody reads previous correspondence.


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## RetirementPlan (8 Oct 2021)

Have people register for the Mercer Online service? That allows you to track your fund value and move money between funds at will, no customer service delays involved.


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## Paul O Mahoney (8 Oct 2021)

RetirementPlan said:


> Have people register for the Mercer Online service? That allows you to track your fund value and move money between funds at will, no customer service delays involved.


My wife has and yes you can see everything but they still insist on verification of everything by email. And as I said earlier phone for Irish clients off the hook but international clients no problem answered by an Irish lad in Ireland.

To expand she just needs to know how to add avcs to her pension outside of payroll. Theres a form somewhere online,  haven't found it yet a link would be handy but I fear its going to take another 2 weeks


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## Dave Vanian (8 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> To expand she just needs to know how to add avcs to her pension outside of payroll.



She can always do this via an AVC PRSA with a company of her own choosing.  In an ideal situation she would get details of the AVCs that Mercer are offering in her scheme and compare it with the AVC PRSA offerings elsewhere.  But if she's getting nowhere with Mercer and the tax deadline is looming she can get an AVC PRSA set up quite quickly.


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## Paul O Mahoney (8 Oct 2021)

Dave Vanian said:


> She can always do this via an AVC PRSA with a company of her own choosing.  In an ideal situation she would get details of the AVCs that Mercer are offering in her scheme and compare it with the AVC PRSA offerings elsewhere.  But if she's getting nowhere with Mercer and the tax deadline is looming she can get an AVC PRSA set up quite quickly.


Dude it was difficult enough to persuade her to do this, her fund should have a bit more in it so shes happy to put it there., and to be honest the fund is well managed and life styling of it has begun.  It's just annoyance with Mercer since 1991 , was a trustee of another fund they have all her details.


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## Dave Vanian (8 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> Dude it was difficult enough to persuade her to do this, her fund should have a bit more in it so shes happy to put it there., and to be honest the fund is well managed and life styling of it has begun.  It's just annoyance with Mercer since 1991 , was a trustee of another fund they have all her details.



Understood.  You can bring a horse to water, but a pencil must be lead.


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## Kimmagegirl (12 Oct 2021)

I contacted Mercer and said that I had a complaint and asked for details of their complaints department.

Nobody responded.

I think that if I was a business owner and someone wanted to make a complaint, I would at least listen to what they had to say....and I would do it immediately.

They are in no hurry. They have it easy.


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## Paul O Mahoney (14 Oct 2021)

Kimmagegirl said:


> I contacted Mercer and said that I had a complaint and asked for details of their complaints department.
> 
> Nobody responded.
> 
> ...


We spent 3 hrs this afternoon trying to find this form to add AVCs .......everything else is there but this illusive form,  and still no reply from the email now almost 4 weeks since. 
Terrible service,  and it raises a question in our minds what's going to happen when my wife retires and her pensions go into ARFs?


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## Bronco Lane (15 Oct 2021)

I contacted Mercer via email to their pensions department.  A week later I received a response asking me lots of personal information. I replied with this information to the person who asked for it.  This was never responded to, nor acknowledged it any way.  About a further week later, a completely different person contacted me.  They basically asked me the same information with some new personal questions.  They never referred back to the first email from their colleague sent a week previously.

It appears that the first person who contacted me was in the "members pension" department. As I am a person in receipt of a pension and not currently paying in to a pension, I am treated differently.  The person who first responded to me decided that it was not anything to do with them so contacted another department and binned my enquiry. Not even a response to tell me that they were forwarding my enquiry on to someone else.

The someone else then completely ignored the information that I had sent to the first person and decided to ask it all over again.


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## SlurrySlump (22 Oct 2021)

Paul O Mahoney said:


> and still no reply from the email now almost 4 weeks since.


I just cannot understand why this company will not acknowledge correspondence, reply to emails in a timely fashion, even after making a complaint.

Utility companies get a bad press because we all use them and we all have to deal with them, however making contact with your pension provider is not a regular occurrence, you would imagine that they would at least try and offer a decent service......even show good manners.....

I'm still waiting over a month now for them to update me on what is happening to my simple enquiry.


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## Paul O Mahoney (22 Oct 2021)

SlurrySlump said:


> I just cannot understand why this company will not acknowledge correspondence, reply to emails in a timely fashion, even after making a complaint.
> 
> Utility companies get a bad press because we all use them and we all have to deal with them, however making contact with your pension provider is not a regular occurrence, you would imagine that they would at least try and offer a decent service......even show good manners.....
> 
> I'm still waiting over a month now for them to update me on what is happening to my simple enquiry.


Well eventually they send out the form and I sent it back yesterday as out bank only allows certain amounts to be paid daily. 

So I did the transactions over the last few days , took screen shots of each of 5 transactions including the confirmation of the efts, filled out the pdf with the details and scanned the bank statement to prove address and a scan of the wifes driving licence.

Went to print the pdf they sent but it 
wasn't  printable so, I simply sent it un signed and told them if they want a signature they need to send a printable copy. 

Got an email last night saying blah blah the phone number is broken and blah blah blah people are working from home,  blah blah blah.

Now if they don't do what they were meant to do it will really start a row and I will go to the pensions board, cause a stink, I'll also get my wife to call one of the trustees of the scheme and let them know. 

They have moved from being excellent and I have dealt with them as a client but also as a trustee,  to almost eir standard of customer care.

And if they cost us money the courts will be involved. I'm sick of it being honest.


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## Paul O Mahoney (22 Oct 2021)

Anyone call the pension board and complain? That might shift them.


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## SlurrySlump (22 Oct 2021)

This thread was started in 2018.  Dreadful to see that nothing has improved service wise.


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## Grizzly (28 Oct 2021)

I dropped in a letter by hand to their offices in Dublin about two weeks ago.  In the letter I asked them to acknowledge receipt. I also marked it for the attention of a person who had sent me an email.

Two weeks on and nothing......I don't know if it is being actioned or what is happening.

Terrible attitude to their customers.


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## Paul O Mahoney (28 Oct 2021)

Grizzly said:


> I dropped in a letter by hand to their offices in Dublin about two weeks ago.  In the letter I asked them to acknowledge receipt. I also marked it for the attention of a person who had sent me an email.
> 
> Two weeks on and nothing......I don't know if it is being actioned or what is happening.
> 
> Terrible attitude to their customers.


They say not to hand deliver, but what's someone to do? These are peoples pensions and they seem so uncaring its not acceptable. 

WFH is not an excuse or the phone is broken, the economy has opened up and surely they'd have the ability to simply reply to simple requests.


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## WaterWater (8 Nov 2021)

We contacted Mercer about 6 weeks ago looking for information on how to transfer our pension payments from the soon to close Ulster Bank to our new bank.  What an ordeal!
Finally got a letter today to say that this will happen at next pay date in November. The letter was dated 27th October and unsigned.....just "The Payroll Department." They didn't even have the decency to sign the letter.
Also, it seems that their postal department has the same urgency as their other departments. It has taken 12 days to arrive at my home.

I have had to chase them every step of the way.


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## Paul O Mahoney (8 Nov 2021)

WaterWater said:


> We contacted Mercer about 6 weeks ago looking for information on how to transfer our pension payments from the soon to close Ulster Bank to our new bank.  What an ordeal!
> Finally got a letter today to say that this will happen at next pay date in November. The letter was dated 27th October and unsigned.....just "The Payroll Department." They didn't even have the decency to sign the letter.
> Also, it seems that their postal department has the same urgency as their other departments. It has taken 12 days to arrive at my home.
> 
> I have had to chase them every step of the way.


Just got a receipt from them for additional AVC dated 1st November so that's not to bad, but the whole process is very slow,  you have to do everything online 2 weeks awaiting a reply to emails/ phone calls, a pdf that wasn't downloadable.

Ok it got done but we started this process on the 8th of September.


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