Employers could face £500 fines

Employers who fail to respond to 28-day warning notices risk a fine that increases each day, a report published today by The Pensions Regulator (TPR) shows.

More than 95 percent of the first small employers required to put their staff into a workplace pension have now complied with the law, showing that automatic enrolment is successful for all sizes of employer.

While compliance rates remain high, TPR’s latest quarterly compliance and enforcement bulletin shows that the number of Escalating Penalty Notices it issues is on the rise.

The fine for small employers with one to four staff who fail to comply with an EPN is £50 per day and for those with five to 49 it is £500 per day.

Charles Counsell, executive director for automatic enrolment, said: “Most employers comply on time and we continue to see compliance rates in the high nineties. Others need a nudge and are prompted to meet their duties when one of our notices comes through their letterbox.

“It’s simply not fair for staff not to receive the pension contributions they are legally due. But failing to act also means an employer risks clocking up a significant penalty until they put things right.

“Our message remains that if things aren’t going well, then talk to us; don’t ignore us.”