It’s five years since automatic enrolment in workplace pensions was introduced by the Government. According to The Pensions Regulator (TPR), by the end of March 2017 over 500,000 employers had complied with their duty to enrol employees, meaning more than 7.6 million workers are now saving for their retirement under the automatic enrolment scheme.
But while the vast majority of employers are on board, TPR has issued many penalty notices and fines to those who’ve failed to meet deadlines. September saw the first prosecution of a company for deliberately not putting its staff into a workplace pension. Stotts Tours, a bus company in Oldham, was charged with failing to comply with the law, and managing director, Alan Stott, is accused of ‘either consenting or conniving in the bus company’s offence.’
If you’re an employer in the Kent area who’s yet to comply and your deadline is looming, stories such as these will no doubt be unsettling. Now is the time to act: it’s imperative
that you get your scheme up and running as your staging date approaches. The last staging date for companies is February 2018. However any new companies set up from October 2017 will require a pension scheme to be in place immediately. This may seem a daunting task, especially to small businesses with just a handful of employees who might not wish to sign up to a workplace scheme. But the fact remains – you must be able to offer the pension, even if employees choose to opt out. Here at AMR, our team of experienced payroll advisors can address any worries you may have about auto-enrolment, and can help guide you through the process to ensure you hit your deadline. To boost our expertise, we’ve teamed up with The Pension Counter to provide a truly comprehensive service. For further details click here. If you require more information about AMR or any of our client services, do give us a call on 01892 559480, or get in touch via our online enquiry form.
