More than 38,000 employers have a deadline within 2014 to put the systems in place. The roll-out has now moved from large corporates to smaller businesses, many of which are struggling to find the resources and finance to launch the schemes effectively and on time.
Sean McSweeney, auto-enrolment specialist at Chase De Vere, has seen a rise in 'distressed' companies looking for help.
"We are increasingly being approached by employers that have taken no action regarding auto-enrolment and have as little as two or three months until their staging date," he said.
"This throws up several challenges. Among these is a lack of choice. Lack of time may lead employers to accept an inferior solution for them and their employees."
Melissa Goddard, director of pensions solutions as Ceridian, told HR magazine that the systems provider has seen a similar pattern of late.
"We've seen a rise in late decision-making. Companies are under pressure, which has subsequently put pressure on us to deliver these systems more quickly than before. Luckily with the smaller companies we can use a light touch but we still need their contracts two months before the before the staging date," she said.
The cost of implementing auto-enrolment could also be an issue for these companies if they leave it until the last moment.
McSweeney said: "If no appropriate budgeting has been done, where will the money to implement and run auto-enrolment come from? Companies may also have to pay extra fees to their payroll providers because by leaving it so late they have no other option."
