A third of small businesses unaware of pension enrolment

More than one in three small business owners have admitted that they don’t know what pension auto-enrolment is, despite the fact that the scheme will be mandatory starting next year.

Business owners are expected to contribute to employees’ pensions unless they opt out, yet 35% had no knowledge at all and 43% believed that the financial strain on their company will prevent them from hiring additional staff. All employees are expected to join the scheme, and failure to prepare by 1 February 2018 will result in serious fines, legal action and risk of imprisonment for business owners and directors.

The survey was run by Bidvine, who teamed up with the Auto-Enrolment Bureau to create a guide based on their results, and what needs to be done to get ready for the next year.

While more than a third had no idea what the pension auto-enrolment was, a further third admitted that they currently have nothing put in place to prepare for the looming deadline, although nearly half of business owners do agree that auto-enrolment is the right move for employees. Only 35% of respondents believe that enough information is being provided to small businesses to get them ready in time, with the majority concerned that they’re being neglected.

“We wanted to get insight into what small businesses think about auto-enrolment, seeing as it’s going to affect every employer in the UK, we were astonished to discover that many didn’t even know what it is!” said Russ Morgan, co-founder of Bidvine. “We were pleased to see that most business owners agree that auto-enrolment is a good idea, however it is slightly worrying that 43% said the extra cost will affect hiring new employees – something the government may have to consider in the future as it may affect employment.

“It might seem like a way off yet, but as you will see in the guide we’ve created with the auto-enrolment bureau, business owners should start the process six months in advance in order to be compliant.”