Getting started as soon as you can usually makes saving easier. It’s often more manageable to save little and often rather than bigger chunks of money later on.
If you’re 22 or older and earning £10,000 or more per year, your employer is legally required to automatically enrol you in their pension scheme. You don’t need to do anything, it is all handled for you. Your employer will either enrol you as soon as you start, or within the first three months of you starting your new job. They will let you know as soon as they have enrolled you.
Your employer must contribute at least 3% of your salary to your pension. Many organisations contribute more than this. The minimum that must go into your pension each month is 8% of your salary, so your employer might ask you to contribute too.
You can opt out of joining your first pension. If you are thinking about doing this, it can be harder to make up for lost time if you start a pension later in life. If you do want to opt out, ask your pension scheme (such as emailing us) for an ‘opt out form’. You need to do this quickly, usually within 6 weeks of joining.
With our pensions, you also receive life insurance, and if you opt out, you lose this benefit too.
If you do decide to opt out, you can re-join later on. As people’s circumstances often change over time, employers will re-enrol people who have opted out every three years. You can opt out again if you prefer not to join a pension.
