What cost for pension set up - when staff will opt

What cost for pension set up - when staff will opt

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Forgive possible basic question, I'm a bit out of the loop.

Payroll schemes are being set up, employees are needed to be offered pensions. But the employees have already said they don't want a pension.

Three years ago, when I was in the loop myself, I was charging £180 ish for setting up NEST schemes, and then assisting with Declarations of Compliance. I was not helping clients force their employees to opt out so don't misread me.

I now am part of a bigger firm where the standard answer is refer them to xyz advisers, who charge £595. I myself was charging £180 because that was less than other spurious IFAs and was fine for 90 mins work.

What are people doing? Refer to a IFA for £250-£300?

Thank you

 

 

 

Replies (12)

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ALISK
By atleastisoundknowledgable...
20th Feb 2020 17:05

Only IFAs can advise and set it up. So instead, I say something like “you can go to (eg) ScottishWidows, Pru etc and pay them to set one up, but TBH most of our clients just do it themselves on Nest. Whatever you do, once the scheme is created, give us admin rights and we’ll take over, letters to e’ees, enrolling etc”. Depending on the client & what else I’m doing for them, it might be £100 on-off and I add about 30% on my normal payroll charges. Application for exemption from A-E, I charge £50 list price, but often gets lost when trying to win new clients.

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Replying to atleastisoundknowledgable...:
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By HeavyMetalMike
20th Feb 2020 17:09

Thank you. Pretty much what I was doing. Getting client to sign something to say they were not wanting advise or whatever. And just doing it!

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Replying to atleastisoundknowledgable...:
JCACE
By jcace
20th Feb 2020 23:19

Although ICAEW guidance considers that "recommending a specific pension scheme to employers and carrying out the transaction" is not a regulated activity and therefore does not constitute giving financial advice. ACCA guidance is along the same lines.
What you can't do is advise employees on whether or not they should opt in, opt out etc

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By Matrix
20th Feb 2020 17:15

We set up various schemes 4 years ago and charged £500, you will recall there were different fees from different members here.

I would probably charge £250 now if they went with one of the schemes we already know how to set up and if only a few employees.

The fact they are all opting out has no bearing on the requirement for a scheme so go with £180 if you are happy with that.

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Replying to Matrix:
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By HeavyMetalMike
20th Feb 2020 17:55

£180 plus inflation is £250 :)

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RLI
By lionofludesch
20th Feb 2020 17:17

I'm sceptical about folk saying they'll opt out.

I recall a workforce of about 12 saying that they were going to opt out. When the fateful day came along, one did - a bloke that already had a pension plan of his own.

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Replying to lionofludesch:
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By neiltonks
20th Feb 2020 17:21

... and the pensions regulator might be suspicious if all the employees do actually opt out!

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Replying to neiltonks:
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By HeavyMetalMike
20th Feb 2020 17:56

I am talking about several clients all with one employees. Apart from the one client with two!

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Replying to HeavyMetalMike:
RLI
By lionofludesch
20th Feb 2020 18:00

HeavyMetalMike wrote:

I am talking about several clients all with one employees. Apart from the one client with two!

What fool asks for a 3% pay cut ?

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Replying to lionofludesch:
the sea otter
By memyself-eye
21st Feb 2020 10:02

loads of nurses (and others) did just that in the eighties when seduced by the lure of better returns via private pensions. They gave up a cast iron, indexed linked public sector pension for the illusion of the market.

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By SXGuy
20th Feb 2020 17:25

Every client who was confident their employees would opt out were wrong.

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Replying to SXGuy:
RLI
By lionofludesch
20th Feb 2020 18:02

SXGuy wrote:

Every client who was confident their employees would opt out were wrong.

Same experience here. I think I've only ever dealt with three, two of whom didn't opt out on being re-enrolled three years later

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