The total number of employers fined for failing to comply with their workplace pensions duties totalled 169 by the end of 2014, according to figures from The Pensions Regulator (TPR).
“The message from The Pensions Regulator is loud and clear. Not complying is not an option. The crackdown is crucial to the continued success of auto-enrolment. “Those employers left to stage should sit up and take notice; The Pensions Regulator is prepared to use the stick as well as the carrot to ensure compliance.” Nathan Long, head of corporate pension research at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Contrasting with three penalty notices in the earlier months of 2014, The Pensions Regulator issued 166 employers with fines in the last three months of the 2014. This is unsurprising, and certainly backs up our belief that smaller employers are finding auto-enrolment more difficult to deal with than the big employers with larger resources that made the task seem easy.
“Without having the luxury of large HR, payroll and finance departments that larger employers benefit from, it seems logical that we will see the number of fines increasing at a greater rate as the months go by. There is help out there, but the question is where will these employers turn for help? Do accountants and other professional advisers have in place trusted relationships with auto-enrolment service providers that can help employers? The Pensions Regulator has made its stance very clear: non-compliance is simply not an option.” Adam Bexson, consultant, Barnett Waddingham.
“The rate of increase in auto-enrolment non-compliance is a concern. The Pensions Regulator is clearly taking a harder line with employers that fail to complete all the technicalities of auto-enrolment on time, which highlights the need for small and medium-sized employers to face this challenge early and get the right support to comply fully, especially if they are already behind the ideal timetable.
“The continued success of auto-enrolment is important for the retirement health of the UK workforce, but it can be a complicated process. We applaud the regulator’s attempts to encourage compliance and recognise the need for fines as a last resort. Employers that make a genuine effort to do the right thing should not face fines for minor non-compliance.”
Mark Pemberthy, director, JLT Employee Benefits.
