Just 16% of the 250 businesses polled by the British Chambers of Commerce claimed they were aware of when the changes to pension provision were set to come into force.
But 56% reported being unaware of the reform.
When asked, ‘has your business received any information about the government’s proposals for pensions reform?’, only 6% were able to answer yes.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has estimated that the cost of the changes on small and medium-sized businesses would be £1.6bn and increase costs for 966,000 firms in the UK.
However, only one in 10 firms surveyed knew how much the reforms would cost them.
David Frost, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, commented: “Not enforcing the changes until 2012 is a smart move as it allows employers some time to phase in the reforms. But more action is needed to improve employer awareness so that businesses are not caught out.”
Neil Carberry, head of pensions and employment at the Confederation of British Industry, told PM the government had a “big job on its hands” in communicating the personal accounts message.
However, he added: “It is better for the government to do some large scale communication when the exact format of personal accounts has been finalised.”
