A Pension Solution for small employers tackling Automatic Enrolment

The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association today (Monday) launched ‘Pension Solution’, an online service designed to guide small employers through Automatic Enrolment for the first time.

Created specifically for small businesses by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, Pension Solution offers a step by step guide for busy small business owners on how to get their business set up with Automatic Enrolment – from what needs to be done by when, to how much it will cost and which employees must be enrolled.

It also provides small employers with an impartial guide to pension providers in the market. It allows small business owners to compare one provider easily against another and includes ratings and reviews from other employers who have used the provider.

Once Pension Solution has helped small businesses understand their obligations under Automatic Enrolment and then choose a provider that suits their needs, it offers handy templates covering employee communications and reminders for next steps.

Lesley Williams, Chair of the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, said:

“The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association knows pensions inside out – our largest members were the first to tackle Automatic Enrolment so we’re familiar with the problems businesses encounter on the way and we also know the solutions. We’ve used our expertise to create Pension Solution, designed purposely for small businesses to make Automatic Enrolment simple and straightforward for them, and to make sure it really works for them we are also letting them add their own experiences and views on providers.

“Small businesses employ millions of people¹ in the UK and we want to help all those employers and employees get a great workplace pension scheme in place. I know from personal experience it can be tough rolling out Automatic Enrolment to your employees for the first time, even in a big company, and small businesses are just as busy and often have less experience of running a pension scheme. Pension Solution gives small businesses the know-how and the tools they need to tackle Automatic Enrolment confidently and successfully.”

Baroness Altmann, Minister of State for Pensions, commented:

“I am delighted to see the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association launch a new initiative to help employers manage Automatic Enrolment. We need Automatic Enrolment to be as straightforward as possible, which is why I have been working with the Pensions Regulator on new initiatives to help employers fulfil their duties and comply with the law.”

Pension Solution is available online at www.pensionsolution.co.uk. It costs £49 for a year’s membership, including full access to all the tools and templates online. People who register early will also receive a half day’s face to face training free of charge. 

The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association commissioned research with 500 businesses with between 50-249 employees; fieldwork was undertaken in August - September 2015. 

Ends

 

NOTES TO EDITORS:

We’re the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, the national association with a ninety-year history of helping pension professionals run better pension schemes. With the support of over 1,300 pension schemes and over 400 supporting businesses, we are the voice for pensions and lifetime savings in Westminster, Whitehall and Brussels.

Our purpose is simple: to help everyone to achieve a better income in retirement. We work to get more money into retirement savings, to get more value out of those savings and to build the confidence and understanding of savers.

Note 1

Small firms accounted for 99.3 per cent of all private sector businesses in the UK, 47.8 per cent of private sector employment and 33.2 per cent of private sector turnover. Source Federation of Small Businesses website.

CONTACTS:

Lucy Grubb, Head of Media and PR, Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association
T: 020 7601 1726, M: 07713 073 023, E: [email protected]

Eleanor Carric, PR Manager, Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association
T: 020 7601 1718, M: 07825 171 446, E: [email protected]

Kathryn Mortimer, Press Officer, Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association

T: T: 0207 601 1748, M: 07901 007 713, E: [email protected]