The majority of claims were in relation to investment and pension advice, as well as self-invested personal pension (SIPP) operator failures. There were also a number of claims paid out to customers for insurance firm failures from previous financial years.

FSCS either paid customers compensation or enabled them to transfer to a new financial provider for their investment or insurance policy.

Publishing its annual report, the FSCS said it had paid compensation to customers who had experienced losses from 563 different authorised financial services firms, including 64 that FSCS declared in default in 2022/23.

In total, more than 430 firms were investigated to confirm their solvency status, and to confirm whether any of their former customers would have eligible claims.

Uncompensated losses on upheld pensions claims amounted to more than £75m.

Fiona Kidy, FSCS’s chief financial officer, said: “The past year has been dominated by the rising cost of living, which in turn has also led to a greater focus on people’s personal finances. In connection to this, there has also been a greater focus on the protection that FSCS and other organisations offer.

“Highlighting the importance of FSCS protection and our limits was the near insolvency of Silicon Valley Bank UK Ltd (SVB UK) at the end of the financial year. During March, our bank and savings protection checker received more than 100,000 checks in a single week. This is approximately four times the usual amount.

“Although FSCS ultimately did not need to step in, I’m very proud that my colleagues pulled out all the stops to ensure we were ready to help SVB UK’s customers.

“As ever, we look forward to the year ahead safe in the knowledge that we are prepared for any challenges that may arise. FSCS will continue to play an important role in building consumer trust and confidence in financial services.”