Five pension trustees were fined yesterday for failing to furnish annual reports on the performance of the funds to members.

L&P Financial Trustees Ltd, Clonskeagh Road, Dublin, was fined a total of €5,000 with €2,400 legal costs.

Four trustees of Ascon (Civil Engineering) Ltd Pension and Life Assurance - Brendan Barrett, Brian Fitzpatrick, Anthony Hussey and Leo Harmon - were individually fined €3,000 each, and ordered to pay €2,400 apiece in legal costs.

The prosecutions were taken by the Pensions Board under the Pensions Act 1990 for failing to file annual reports within nine months of the end of the tax year and for failing to notify relevant parties, including the board and trade unions representing members, that the reports were available.

The Ascon group had also failed to notify a change of one of the trustees.

L&P Financial Trustees pleaded guilty to five summonses in relation to reports for 2003 while the Ascon group admitted the facts but argued unsuccessfully that the prosecution was delayed by the Pensions Board and therefore legally out of time.

Dublin District Court heard that in the L&P case, the failure to provide a report for the first year in which it was required to do so, meant members did not know there had been an outstanding contribution of €44,000 from the employer, which had not been paid into the fund.

Pensions Board head of investigations, Jerry Moriarty, said the €44,000 had since been paid but it was a matter of concern that employees would not have known about this due to a report not being furnished.

Counsel for the company said the problem had arisen because the scheme was only set up in 2000 and, in the first year, there were no contributions leading the trustees to believe they did not have to prepare a report.

There had been additional factors including the fact that scheme auditors Arthur Andersen had merged with KPMG and a turnover in staff led to delay in addressing the issue.

In relation to the Ascon group, actuary Rodney Smythe, of Aon Consulting, which prepared the reports, said the failure to notify the Pension Board was their responsibility.

Judge Anne Watkin said the failure was by the actuary or auditors representing the four Ascon group trustees and the evidence given by them was "very vague".

The court heard the Ascon group represented a large membership of 445 people, but the breach of the law did not involve any non or late payment of contributions.