45% of business owners without a workplace pension scheme are still unclear about their responsibilities.

According to research by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), smaller businesses are unclear what they need to do when it comes to auto-enrolment pensions and what the associated costs will be.

76% of owners said that auto-enrolment pensions put too much pressure on their business.

Over the next two years more than one million businesses will need to set up a workplace pension scheme for their employees. Although most employers feel confident about auto-enrolment, 45% of businesses who haven’t yet submitted are unclear on what they need to do, with 26% not knowing their staging date.

FSB also found that businesses were underestimating the costs of implementing workplace pensions:

• Businesses still to start the process expect overall costs to be approximately £900

• Businesses who have already introduced auto-enrolment reported average costs of £1400

• 1 in 5 businesses reported costs upwards of £2000.

One-third of businesses that have yet to start auto-enrolment pensions are expected to plan wage freezes or cuts in response.

Get in touch

We can help if you:

• are unsure about your responsibilities under the new workplace pensions legislation,
• are looking for help and guidance implementing a workplace pension scheme, or
• feel that your current scheme needs reviewing.

For more information or to arrange a meeting, give one of our advisers a call on 01483 205890.