As reported on this news page in December last year, according to a report by employee benefits adviser Helm Godfrey, things haven’t got much better, with small and medium-sized businesses continuing to be at risk of choosing unsuitable pension schemes because of a lack of auto enrolment knowledge among accountants.
The report has revealed that while 70% of small firms with 4 or fewer employees would turn to their accountant for auto enrolment advice, 43% of accountants believe they do not know enough about auto enrolment to give accurate and up-to-date advice.
More than half (56%) of accountants admitted to advising all of their clients to choose the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) auto enrolment scheme, without researching whether this would be the best option for their client.
In response to the findings, Helm Godfrey is urging small and medium-sized firms to seek advice on a range of auto enrolment schemes to ensure they have the necessary information to choose the scheme that is best for their business, an approach that we agree with wholeheartedly, here at Petaurum Solutions. Smaller firms are also advised to consider factors other than price when choosing a scheme, such as whether is time consuming to administer or has significant administration costs.
Petaurum Solutions’ Comment
Complying with complex Auto Enrolment obligations can be a daunting prospect for many small and micro-sized business. Choosing a cost effective, long-term implementation solution is critical for these businesses to ensure they do not become swamped with the processing requirements and responsibilities that Auto Enrolment can bring. Therefore, for businesses considering their solution, focus should not only be on the pension scheme, but also on how it will be administered, methods to communicate, impacts on systems and data collection processes along with any HR and Legal changes may you need to make.
Our Defaqto 5* quality Carey Master Trust Pension Scheme, comes with best in class assessment and communication software and is part of our SME specific, competitively priced end-to-end solution that will take care of the above, leaving you free to manage your business safe in the knowledge that your Auto Enrolment obligations are in professional hands. Want to know more? Then feel free to download our info pack here, or contact us to secure your PAE future.
If you’re an accountant and would like to discuss a partnership approach to support your clients, please let us know.
This information is intended as a general overview and discussion of the subjects dealt with. The information provided here was accurate as of the day it was posted; however, the law may have changed since that date. This information is not intended to be, and should not be used as, a substitute for taking legal, HR or benefits advice in any specific situation. Petaurum Solutions is not responsible for any actions taken or not taken on the basis of this information. Please refer to the full terms and conditions on our website.