EMERGENCY meetings were today taking place at the Southampton headquarters of Skandia after revelations that thousands of customers have been over-charged on their pensions.

The financial services company, which employs up to 1,500 people in the city, faces a hefty fine if the industry regulator, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), rules that the error should have been spotted earlier.

It emerged publicly yesterday that 10,000 policyholders, most of them with personal pension plans, have been affected by excessive charging over the past 14 years, while some have been undercharged.

Skandia spokeswoman Jo Gilbey said that no customers would be left out of pocket as a result of the blunder, and that the company was working with the FSA to resolve the issue.

According to reports, those who have overpaid will be given their money back, plus extra payments to reflect investment growth.

Customers who have been undercharged will not have to make up the difference.

Skandia's top man in Southampton, Nick Poyntz-Wright, was understood to be asking for all stops to be pulled out by his staff in a bid to sort out the problem in what is now being regarded as a damage limitation exercise.

The FSA pledged today that no policyholders will be "disadvantaged" by the company's charging errors.

It did not rule out action against Skandia, which could cost the company hundreds of thousands of pounds in fines.

Skandia, which made £127m profit last year and is worth an estimated £1 billion, said affected customers would not be informed until April, when a full explanation would be available.