[England] £1,200+ missing from my NEST pension – employer ignoring me and others

Hi all,

I’m based in the UK (England) and I’ve just realised I’m missing over 6 months of pension contributions into my NEST account – both my contributions (from my salary) and the employer contributions. I've worked for my employer for 1 year and 8 months.

I’m auto-enrolled, and my payslips show pension deductions being taken from my salary every month, plus the employer contribution line. But when I log into my NEST account, those contributions just aren’t there for the last 6+ months.

I’ve:

- Emailed HR and payroll several times

- Asked my line manager to escalate

- Spoken to colleagues – several of them have noticed the same issue with their NEST accounts

The company either ignores the emails or gives vague “we’re looking into it” responses and then never follows up. There’s been no explanation and no sign of the missing contributions being paid across. It honestly feels like they’re hoping people won’t notice.

I’m really worried, because this is effectively money taken out of my salary that’s not gone where it’s supposed to, plus the employer side that I’m owed. It’s now over £1,200 missing for me alone, and more for colleagues.

What are my legal options here?

Is this something I should report to an external body (e.g. The Pensions Regulator, HMRC, etc.) – and if so, how do I actually do that?

Should I send some kind of formal “letter before action” or grievance first, and is there a template for that?

Is this potentially criminal (e.g. taking money from employees’ pay that never reaches the pension provider), or just a civil/employment issue?

I’m still employed there and worried about retaliation, but I also don’t want to just let this slide – especially as it’s affecting multiple people.

Any guidance on the best steps to take, who to report this to, and how to word things so I’m taken seriously would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance.