Risk management giant Aon claimed the top one hundred company pension schemes’ combined deficit had risen by £15bn on Tuesday in the greatest equities crash since 9-11, rising a further £9bn this morning to £42bn overall.

‘Based on market movements over the past week, pension schemes have lost over £40bn in a week, which is equivalent to wiping out all the gains made in 2007,’ Marcus Hurd, Aon senior consultant and actuary, told globalpensions.com

Following the massive drop in aggregate surplus from £10bn at the end of December to a £15bn deficit three weeks later, PriceWaterhouseCoopers urged company pension funds to be cautious when making investment decisions based on valuations taken on a particular day.

‘It is far better is to work towards agreement of what kind of risks the sponsoring employer and trustees are prepared to take and then agree on the financing and asset strategies,’ Marc Hommel, PwC pensions partner, said:

Further reading:

UK pensions back in the black

Read the story in Global Pensions