Employee Benefits - BenefitsPlus
These Frequently Asked Questions explain how BenefitsPlus Car Parking works and will hopefully answer any questions you may have. However, if there’s anything you are unsure of after reading through the information please email benefitsplus-hr@salford.ac.uk or contact the HR Shared Services Team on extension 52121 with your question.
1) What is BenefitsPlus Car Parking?
The idea behind BenefitsPlus Car Parking is to increase your take home salary by reducing the amount of Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions (NIC) you pay.
To take advantage of the tax and NIC efficient nature of the package you need to agree a set reduction in your salary equivalent to the cost of the Car Parking charge. Under BenefitsPlus Car Parking you will be able to effectively pay for your car parking out of your salary i.e. before any Income Tax or NIC has been deducted, thereby saving you money.
By joining BenefitsPlus Car Parking:
- Your basic salary will be reduced by the amount of the car parking permit.
- This will be shown on your payslip as a ‘BenefitsPlus Car Parking’ adjustment.
- As your basic salary is reduced, you will pay less Income Tax and NIC and your take home salary will increase.
This concept is known as ‘salary sacrifice’ as you are giving up an amount of salary in exchange for a benefit. This will not affect other pay and benefits provided by the University as we will use your Notional Salary to calculate these (see question 10). Notional Salary is your original salary amount before the salary sacrifice reduction.
2) How much will I save if I join BenefitsPlus Car Parking?
Based on a basic rate taxpayer in a pension scheme the savings are as follows:
| Annual Permit Cost | Gross Monthly Cost without salary sacrifice | Actual monthly cost with salary sacrifice | Monthly saving | Annual Saving |
| £274.00 | £22.83 | £15.89 | £6.94 | £83.28 |
| £180.00 | £15.00 | £10.44 | £4.56 | £54.72 |
3) How do I join?
If you are already paying for your car park permit through salary deductions, please complete a BenefitsPlus Car Parking opt-in form and send to the Payroll Section who will include you in the scheme and make the necessary adjustments to your salary. Your existing permit will remain valid.
The BenefitsPlus Car Parking opt in form can be downloaded here or obtained from Human Resources.
If you do not have a car park permit please visit the Estates and Property Services website here.
4) Are all University employees eligible to join BenefitsPlus Car Parking?
All University employees are eligible to join BenefitsPlus Car Parking however members of the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) should carefully read question 17 as BenefitsPlus Car Parking may affect your pension benefits. You should consider the potential impact on your TPS pension before you agree to join.
5) I can buy a car parking permit at any time of year, can I join BenefitsPlus Car Parking at any time of year?
Yes. You can opt-in to BenefitsPlus Car Parking at any time of year. If you currently have a car parking pass we recommend that you join as soon as possible to take advantage of the tax and NIC savings. Once your form is received, the BenefitsPlus Car parking arrangement will be applied from your next pay period onwards.
6) What if I no longer need my car parking permit (for example, if I don’t need it over the summer)?
Once you opt-in to BenefitsPlus Car Parking your decision to be in the scheme will remain valid.
If you no longer need a car parking permit (for example if you stop driving to work) then once you return the permit to Estates and Property Services the BenefitsPlus Car Parking arrangement will cease.
7) What if I want a car parking permit but can no longer participate in BenefitsPlus car parking?
We recognise that as a result of a change in your personal circumstances you may no longer be able to participate in BenefitsPlus Car Parking, e.g. employees who receive statutory payments such as SSP, or employees who reduce their hours of work and so no longer pay NIC. In these circumstances the University will automatically opt you out.
Once you have been automatically opted out, if your personal circumstances change again and you are able to participate in BenefitsPlus Car Parking you should contact Estates and Property Services.
8) What if I want to change my car parking permit e.g. from a full permit to 16 hours?
You should arrange the change to your permit with the Car Parking Team in Estates and Property Services who will notify the Payroll Section of the change. The adjustment to your BenefitsPlus Car Parking reduction will be reflected in your next salary payment.
9) What if the Car Parking rates change?
Your inclusion in the BenefitsPlus Car Parking scheme will not be affected by a change in car parking rates. If the car parking rates are amended you will be notified and the adjustment in your salary will also be amended to reflect these changes.
10) If I am reducing my salary, will this have an impact on other pay elements and benefits which are based on my salary?
No. We will use your Notional Salary to calculate any benefits and pay elements which are determined by your salary. These include:
- Overtime
- Sick pay
- Holiday pay
- Annual pay review
- Occupational maternity, paternity and adoption pay
- Pension benefits (see question 17)
11) Will BenefitsPlus Car Parking affect my application for loans and mortgages?
The lender will write to the University for a reference and we will give them details of your Notional Salary which the majority of lenders will accept.
12) Will BenefitsPlus Car Parking always be in place?
The University is committed to operating BenefitsPlus Car Parking however if for any reason the University cannot operate the scheme the situation will be reviewed. The University expressly reserves its right to alter the terms of BenefitsPlus Car Parking or to withdraw from it at any time. The University is under no obligation and does not accept any liability to provide any form of compensation for any benefits lost from ceasing to operate BenefitsPlus Car Parking. If BenefitsPlus Car Parking ceases, employees would revert to the system of making car parking payments as deductions from net salary.
13) How does BenefitsPlus Car Parking affect me for National Minimum Wage (NMW) purposes?
The University cannot pay at a rate below the NMW (currently £6.08 per hour over the age of 21). As a result if the reduction in your salary takes your hourly rate below this level you will not be able to participate. It is unlikely any University employees will be affected by this but we will carry out checks to ensure this does not happen and will notify you should this be the case.
14) Will BenefitsPlus Car Parking have any effect on my entitlement to state benefits such as the state pension?
Your entitlement to state benefits depends on your earnings rather than the amount of Income Tax or NIC you pay. If your earnings are above the NIC or Lower Earnings Limit (£442 per month at 2011/2012 rates) your entitlement to benefits such as the Basic State Pension, Employment and Support Allowance and Jobseekers Allowance will be unaffected. The University will monitor earnings to ensure that any employees who may be affected will not be included in BenefitsPlus Car Parking.
Entitlement to state benefits is a very complex area. Further advice can be found at www.hmrc.gov.uk 
or www.dwp.gov.uk .
15) What if I also want to participate in other BenefitsPlus arrangements such as childcare vouchers?
Provided you meet the rules of entry for each scheme and the reductions for your chosen salary sacrifice options do not take your salary to a rate below the NMW you will be able to participate in all schemes.
16) What impact will BenefitsPlus Car Parking have on my Working Tax Credits/Child Tax Credit/Child Support Agency payments?
Working Tax Credit (WTC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) payments are based on your gross salary. As your gross salary will reduce under BenefitsPlus Car Parking, it follows that there may be a change to your WTC and CTC payments as they will be calculated on your reduced salary.
HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC) Tax credit calculator (http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/calculator.htm 
) can be used to give you an idea of how your WTC and CTC payments may be affected.
Child Support Agency (CSA) payments are calculated using your take home salary. As your take home salary will reduce under BenefitsPlus Cycle to Work, it follows that there may be a change in the amount of CSA payments. We understand that you may be required to inform the CSA if your take home pay changes and further advice can be found at www.csa.gov.uk 
17) Will I lose any pension benefits as my salary is reducing?
BenefitsPlus Car Parking will not affect the pension benefits for members of the USS and Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) pension arrangements. These pension schemes accept the concept of Notional Salary which means they calculate your pension benefits before the BenefitsPlus Car Parking reduction is applied.
For members of the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) pension scheme, the TPS does not currently accept the concept of Notional Salary for Car Parking. This means that joining BenefitsPlus Car Parking may have an impact on your TPS benefit entitlement and the level of your pension contributions.
The TPS is a defined benefit scheme and the pension is based on the better of the last year’s salary or the re-valued (in line with the Retail Price Index) average of the best three consecutive years’ salary in the last ten years of service. Consequently for employees who are many years off retirement the BenefitsPlus arrangement is in practice unlikely to affect pension benefits. However the life assurance component (death-in-service) would certainly be affected, as would your entitlement to an early pension if obliged to retire due to ill health or seriously disabling injury.
18) How do I obtain independent financial advice?
You can contact an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) in your area by calling IFA Promotions on 0800 085 3250, or via the website on www.unbiased.co.uk . Please note that the University will not pay for any chargeable advice.
19) What happens if I cease to be employed by the University?
The BenefitsPlus Car Parking arrangement will automatically terminate in the month you leave the University.