Opting out | Help and support

How do I get my opt-out refund?

Amanda Fletcher — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 10:46:19 +0000

Am I entitled to a refund?

If you’ve requested to opt out of your workplace pension scheme within 1 calendar month of being enrolled, you’ll be entitled to a refund of your contributions.

If you request to cease active membership after this time, you won’t be entitled to a refund. Any contributions that you and your employer have paid into your pension pot will remain invested in The People’s Pension until you decide to access your benefits; or you can transfer your savings to another provider. Under HM Revenue & Customs rules, you can normally access your pot from your normal minimum pension age.

How will I receive my refund?

After we receive your opt-out request, we let your employer know the date they should stop taking pension contributions from you. As they’re responsible for deducting these directly from your salary, it’s also their responsibility to stop taking contributions from you.

It’ll usually take your employer around 3-6 weeks to process your refund. This is a refund of your own contributions and doesn’t include tax relief or contributions from your employer.

Find out more about how your employer refunds you.

Please speak to your employer directly to see when they’ll action your request and issue you with a refund.

How can I find out what benefits I might lose if I opt out?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:02:08 +0000

Your joiner information will detail the benefits that the scheme provides. If you haven’t received this, or can’t find it, please contact your employer.

If you’re thinking of opting out, or stopping contributions, you may be missing out on valuable retirement benefits:

The contributions that your employer makes into your pension pot
The tax relief that the government adds to contributions that you make into your pension pot
The opportunity to have your money grow in a pension pot.

How do I opt out?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:46 +0000

To find out more — such as why you were enrolled into The People’s Pension and what to consider before you opt out — visit our dedicated opt out webpage.

To opt out, you’ll need to have:

your customer number (you can find this on your joining letter or email)
your date of birth
your National Insurance number.

You can either call our opt-out service on 0300 330 1280, or you can opt out online (you won’t need to set up your account to do this).

You won’t be able to opt out until you’ve had your first contribution deducted and been enrolled into The People’s Pension by your employer. If you opt out within 1 calendar month of being enrolled, you’ll receive a refund of the contributions deducted.

If you’re opting out online, you’ll get a confirmation of your opt out on screen. If you’re calling the automated telephone line, there’ll be a message at the end of the call. We’ll let your employer know the date they should stop taking pension contributions from you.

I want to opt out but I can’t find my customer number – where can I find this?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:46 +0000

Your customer number is a 7 or 8-digit number.

When your employer signed you up to The People’s Pension, we’d have sent you joiner information with your customer number, either by post or by email. And any letters we’ve sent you since you joined will have your customer number on, too.

So, to find your customer number you could try to find a letter from us, or try searching your inbox or junk folder for any emails from:

If you can’t find any correspondence from us with your customer number on, you’ll need to contact us to ask us to send it to you again. You’ll need your National Insurance number so we can verify your identity – you’ll find this on your payslips.

Once you’ve found your customer number, you can either call our opt-out service on 0300 330 1280, or you can opt out online (you won’t need to set up your account to do this).

What happens if I opt out after the one month opt-out period?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:45 +0000

If the one month opt-out period has expired, we’re unable to refund your contributions. Your contributions will remain invested in The People’s Pension until you decide to access your benefits; or you can transfer your pension savings to another suitable pension arrangement at any time. Under HM Revenue & Customs rules, you can take your pension savings once you’ve reached your normal minimum pension age.

How long does opting out last for?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:43 +0000

An opt-out from a pension scheme used for auto-enrolment normally lasts for 3 years. If you’ve opted out, ceased active membership or are paying below the minimum contribution levels, your employer is required to re-enrol you back into the scheme at a later date (normally every 3 years) if you’re an eligible jobholder at that time.

If you’re still not ready to join the scheme or start paying contributions again, you can decide to opt out for a further 3-year period.

You can change your mind and decide to opt back into the scheme at any time. If you want to do this, please speak to your employer first.

I’ve opted out, so why have I been re-enrolled?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:43 +0000

The government has rules in place which means that after every 3 years your employer will need to re-enrol you back into their scheme. If you don’t want to join, you can inform us by opting out after you’ve been re-enrolled through your Online Account or call our automated opt-out phone line on 0300 330 1280.

I don’t want to save into a pension at the moment but might change my mind in the future. What should I do?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:42 +0000

If you don’t want to stay enrolled in a pension scheme, you can opt out. If you opt out of the scheme within one month of being auto-enrolled, you’ll be treated as if you had never joined the scheme. If you change your mind, you may be able to opt back in – ask your employer if you want to do this. If you stay opted out of the scheme, your employer will normally put you back into pension saving three years after you’ve opted out. If you move jobs, you may be auto-enrolled into a new workplace pension scheme. This will depend on the size of your new employer, when you move, and if you meet the criteria to be enrolled. You’ll still be able to opt out again if you’d like to.

How can I opt back in?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:42 +0000

Your employer is required to automatically enrol you into the scheme, normally every 3 years, provided you’re an eligible jobholder.

You may also ask to re-join the scheme at any time, but your employer only has to action a request to re-join once every 12 months.

You’ll need to ask your employer to join the pension scheme. This must be:

in writing – but doesn’t have to be a formal document. It can be a letter or an email.
signed by you. If it was sent by email, it must include a statement confirming that you personally submitted the notice.

Can I re-join my workplace pension scheme?

archie.homer — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:01:42 +0000

Yes, you can ask your employer to let you re-join your workplace pension scheme at any time. However, if you want to opt back in more than once in any 12-month period, this will require the consent of your employer. To re-join, you’ll need to give your employer a signed note or email that clearly comes from you.