January might seem a long way off, but not when it comes to auto enrolment.
As the end of the year draws closer, many small businesses are focusing on getting last bits of business done, and looking forward to a well-earned break over the festive season.
When day-to-day business slows down, there’s also the chance to catch up on forgotten admin. Tempted to put this off? You might be able to do that for some things, but not if you need to set up a workplace pension.
January for example might seem ages away, but if that’s your business’s staging deadline, you should already have decided on your pension scheme, leaving it until the New Year to start the process is too late. There are lots of things to do in getting something in place:
- Decide who in your business will be responsible and tell the regulator
- Work out which of your staff needs to be enrolled, and how much they and you will be contributing
- Examine the pension schemes on the market, and decide which is both good, and fits the needs of your business and staff
- Tell your employees what’s going on at the right time and in the right way
- Inform the regulator that you’ve done everything
Choosing a scheme merits spending most time; make a poor decision, and the time and cost involved in correcting it later can be significant. Your employees too are expecting you to find one that will last long-term, and is a secure place for them to save. After all, it’s their financial future that auto enrolment is all about.
To have the best chance of getting things sorted by January, your business should ideally have already chosen its scheme, and be well on the way to lining up your payroll process to your chosen provider.
But if that’s not the case, for whatever reason, don’t panic! And don’t ignore it either.
While it may be a challenge to do it all on your own, reaching out for some comprehensive help should get you there. Whitley Stimpson has teamed up with Husky Finance to underpin our range of Automatic Enrolment solutions for small and micro employers. No one else can do it for you without your involvement, but at least the Husky service can get you through the list faster, focusing you on what everything means and what’s most important. And it can then help you get it set-up and running smoothly.
But if you put it off any longer, the refreshment you gain from your festive break might prove short-lived.
If you would like to find out more about Auto Enrolment Solutions please call Val Buzzard on 01295 270200.