Only 29 per cent of companies starting pension enrolment in 2016 are fully aware of the closing date and only 46 per cent of those starting in 2017 are aware of their responsibilities, according to the Pensions Regulator.

With many pharmacies now starting to grapple with the complexities of employer pension schemes for the first time, have some left it too late?

Pensions expert Roger Sanders, OBE, warns that business owners should familiarise themselves with what’s required as soon as possible.

“Employers’ auto-enrolment duties go far beyond setting up a pension scheme and enrolling staff in it. They must assess their workforce, work out who to enrol and decide how much they and their employees will contribute. They also need to keep records of all this information, together with any changes, all of which represents a significant amount of work for smaller employers,” he said.

“However, we are finding many businesses in pharmacy lack the accurate, up-to-date information on employees vital to completing enrolment smoothly. Firms that leave their enrolment preparation too late will be in for a shock when they discover years of payroll and employee data needs to be sorted before they can properly begin.”

Mr Sanders is managing director of Lighthouse Group Employee Benefit, past winners of the FT Businesses Large IFA of the Year Award.