A staggering 93% of advisers say pension providers are cherry picking auto enrolment business according to new research conducted by Defaqto on behalf of NOW: Pensions.
Of the 244 advisers questioned by Defaqto, just 8% believe pension providers have effectively managed demand for auto enrolment services so far this year while over two thirds (68%) claim that some have managed while others haven’t.
When asked about the main issues they encountered, aside from cherry picking business, the main factors advisers gave were:
- Providers’ systems are not as efficient as they should be (58%)
- Providers are changing their acceptance criteria (55%)
- Increasing volumes are causing service delays (49%)
- Providers have been withdrawing from the market (47%)
- A lack of effective communication between payroll and pension providers (47%)
- Providers’ telephone support not as efficient as it should be (37%)
Looking ahead, over half (55%) of advisers lack confidence in providers’ ability to handle the demand for auto enrolment services next year. The main reason given was that volumes are so huge it will be virtually impossible to effectively manage it cited by 84%, while nearly two thirds (64%) say increasing numbers of providers will withdraw from the market putting increased pressure on remaining players. Over half (55%) expressed concern that pension providers’ systems aren’t as efficient as they should be.
Morten Nilsson, CEO of NOW: Pensions said: “As we go into 2015, the problem of “cherry picking” will worsen as fewer providers actively participate in auto enrolment. But, we remain committed to accepting all employers regardless of size on equal terms.
“To keep pace with growing demand, we’ve invested heavily in new online systems. But, as the market evolves we’ve remained responsive to feedback from clients, intermediaries and payroll providers and are introducing a number of improvements to our systems and service.
“In recent months we have increased the size of our client support team five-fold and average call waiting times for clients and advisers needing help are now less than 30 seconds.”
|
