It is a legal requirement for employers to write to each member of staff to tell them how automatic enrolment affects them and about their rights. Our publications page includes a summary of the information that should be communicated the each category of staff member.
The Pensions Regulator have published a letter template tool to assist with this task. The tool can be accessed at http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/employers/letter-templates-for-employers.aspx
Once you know that you have staff to automatically enrol, you must send their details to your pension scheme to ensure active membership. Then you must write to these staff to tell them they’ve been automatically enrolled and that they have a right to opt out of the pension scheme – this must happened within six weeks of your staging date. Please see our previous article on how to find out your staging date.
Once your staging date has passed and your existing employees have been automatically enrolled, you must write to any new employees within six weeks of the day a new staff member joins or becomes eligible to be automatically enrolled.
The exception is for existing scheme members who must be contacted within two months.
The letters may be sent to staff by post or email, but the information must be sent in writing and must be sent individually. A third party such as an accountant or financial adviser may send the letters on the employers behalf, but it remains the employers responsibility to make sure the right information gets to the right member of staff at the right time.
To see The Pensions Regulators full guidance on providing information to employees click here
This is the seventh instalment in a series of articles regarding auto enrolment as detailed on our Employer Action Plan. Previous instalments detailed below:
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3 -
4 –
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For more information on pensions or to discuss your auto enrolment action plan please contact us.
