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Auto Enrolment – Nominate a contact

Posted by: edwinsmith on April 22nd, 2014

In order to help employers manage their auto enrolment responsibilities, the Pensions Regulator will send regular emails to a nominated contact at key stages along the process.

Employers can nominate up to 2 contacts.  The primary contact must be the most senior person in the organisation, for example the CEO or managing director.  The secondary contact is optional and would typically be the person who will manage or implement the auto enrolment process, for example HR manager or payroll accountant.

The process of nomination is a simple form whch can be completed on the Pensions Regulator website including the name, job title and contact details for each nominee.   You will also need either the employers PAYE reference number or the unique code included on the letter each employer should receive when their staging date is less than 12 months away.

Please note that nominating a contact does not mean that the employer is registered for auto enrolment.  The full responsibility for complying with duties remains with the employing organisation – not the nominated contact.

To nominate a contact on the pensions regulator website click here.

This is the second instalment in a series of articles regarding auto enrolment as detailed on our Employer Action Plan.

First instalment – Know your staging date

For further advice on pensions and payroll please contact us

Filed under: Auto enrolment, Employers

Auto enrolment – know your staging date

Posted by: edwinsmith on March 31st, 2014

By April 2017 all UK employers will have auto enrolled their employees into a work place pension.  The first question that most employers should ask now is “when will this affect me”?

Employers will receive a notification 12 months before their staging date and a reminder will be sent 3 months before the staging date.  However it is currently estimated that preparing for auto enrolment may take 12 – 18 months, therefore it is advisable that employers make themselves aware of their staging dates as soon as possible. A table of staging dates can be found on the publications page - staging dates for auto enrolment.

There is a modified staging date (see table 2 on our publications page) for certain small employers who can choose to move their staging date back to a later date than the one determined at 1 April 2012 if, on that date, they:

  1. employed fewer than 50 staff,  and
  2. had, or were part of, a PAYE scheme that has more than 50 people in it.

For smaller employers the staging date is dependent on the first characters of the PAYE employer reference number.  If you are unsure of your employer reference number or would like clarification of your staging date please contact us.

This is the first instalment in a series of articles regarding auto enrolment as detailed on our Employer Action Plan.

Filed under: Auto enrolment, Employers

Auto Enrolment

Posted by: edwinsmith on March 26th, 2014

From October 2012 the largest employers began auto enrolling their employees into workplace pensions.  For smaller employers the staging dates are staggered to ensure that all UK employers will have auto enrolled their staff by April 2017.

Over the coming months we will publish a series of blogs on the subject of auto enrolment and the preparation required.

Employers should have an action plan in place which will ensure they are properly prepared before their staging date.  The employer action plan will include a number of tasks:

  1. Know your staging date
  2. Nominate a contact
  3. Develop initial plans
  4. Know your workforce
  5. Check processes and software
  6. Review pension arrangements
  7. Communicate to staff
  8. Record keeping, enrolment and registration once the staging date arrives
  9. Know your ongoing responsibilities

To assist employers prepare for auto enrolment The Pensions Regulator has designed a planning tool which can be found at Planning for auto enrolment - The Pensions 

If you require any advice concerning auto enrolment then please contact us.

Filed under: Auto enrolment, Employers
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