Partner Article

Leading HR software provider warns of huge fines over pension auto-enrolment

28 August 2013 – Leading software provider, Advanced Business Solutions (Advanced) is warning businesses, which are still not compliant with pension auto-enrolment that they will face steep fines if they fail to act soon. This follows The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) recent warning to businesses unlikely to achieve compliance before the next wave of deadlines this autumn. Auto-enrolment, a new law meaning every employer must automatically enrol into a workplace pension scheme, was introduced to reform workplace pension provision. The scheme was rolled out to the largest firms in October 2012 and will be shortly introduced to smaller firms. *Companies employing between 1,250 and 1,999 staff have until September 1 to be fully compliant, organisations employing between 800-1,249 have until October 1, and smaller enterprises employing between 500 and 799 staff have until November 1. Advanced, which offers a comprehensive solution for businesses looking to manage their auto-enrolment pension provision, advises that achieving compliance is straightforward with the right software in place. Simon Fowler, Managing Director, Advanced Business Solutions (Commercial Division) said: “The cost for those businesses which don’t get the auto-enrolment process right will be massive. Those employing more than 500 staff could be liable for fines of up to *£10,000 for every day of non-compliance, which is potentially £70,000 a week, or £310,000 a month. These eye-watering sums would soon mount up and no business, particularly in the current climate, can afford to risk such an expensive mistake. Businesses, which are not ready to go live must act quickly.”

Over the last twelve months, Advanced has seen an increasing demand for the OpenPeople payroll system, which includes a fully automated pension auto-enrolment element that allows employers to take charge of compliance simply and conveniently through their payroll department. The software also includes a full assessment of employees, postponement, refund calculations, standard NEST extracts, letter generation and document management options.

OpenPeople also creates a pension auto-enrolment mail merge schedule, which highlights specific letters that are required to be sent to employees to ensure routine compliance is achieved. “My main message to employers is to allow plenty of time to prepare for their auto-enrolment go-live date. The biggest challenge for UK businesses will be next year, when SMEs are gradually opted in. With an estimated 4.8 million businesses in the UK, and 99% of those classified as SMEs, the scope for error will increase greatly,” concludes Fowler.

Businesses seeking guidance on the subject of auto-enrolment, including the next round of staging dates and potential costs should visit: www.advancedcomputersoftware.com/autoenrol/

ENDS

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Advanced Business Solutions .