Anyone else's employer deducting pension money & not putting it in pension scheme?

[Squirrelpeanutthief]

Has anyone had their pension money deducted from their wages but not paid into the pension scheme?

I work in social care, my employer deducts money from our wages every month but the money hasn't been paid into the pension scheme (Nest) for over 6 months. Obviously I have stopped my payments until this is resolved but after talking to friends & colleagues in care homes & care agency based employment, this is happening to quite a few people possibly as a way to force people to stop paying into a private pension meaning employers don't have to pay their percentage in either.

This is the 5th time this employer has done this to the staff (I'm new & didn't know this before) Every 2 years the company folds & a new one takes over with the same directors as the previous company & within months they stop paying pension money again. As it's technically a new company it doesn't flag up with the pension ombudsman that it's the same people robbing their staff.

This is (obviously) totally wrong and you can report it to the regulator here:
https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/contact-us/scheme-members-who-to-contact/report-concerns-about-your-workplace-pension/report-missing-payments-to-your-workplace-pension

If they are killing the company every 2 years and restarting I'd be suspicious whether they are paying your PAYE and NICs over as well. Worth checking your NI history on Gov.uk and you will need to talk to HMRC if there is a problem.
https://www.gov.uk/check-national-insurance-record

Is this not fraud, and therefore a police matter?

This is theft.

Where is the money going?

yes we had this and threatenged to report it.

They quickly paid it over.

They're probably sitting on it as long as they can so they get the rewards, not you.

Thanks @HappyHolidai all checked with HMRC & reported to Pension Ombudsman already.

Just wondered if this was happening all over the country or just a few care companies in my area. The ones I know are doing it are not linked to each other in any way.

It is fairly common for businesses with cashflow problems to 'forget' do that. They deduct it from your pay, and are then supposed to send it to your pension provider, along with the employer's contribution as well.

Tantamount to fraud.

You need to report to The Pensions Regulator not the ombudsman using the link a pp posted

This happened to my dh and it was never resolved.

Happening to me currently. My employer does not have cash flow problems. It is more due to incompetence rather than a deliberate ploy in their case.