A starter with no details
The client mentions a new starter in their hours for the period: 'Tom started Monday, 30 hours'. Nothing else. The bureau asks for Tom's details. The manager says they gave him a form. A day later, a photo arrives of a half-filled starter checklist, with the bank details missing and the National Insurance number unreadable.
Cut-off passes. Tom is paid late, or paid on a default code because the starter checklist is incomplete, and phones the client to complain about his first payslip.
Why starter details arrive in pieces
The information comes from the employee but travels through the client, who is busy and may not know what the bureau needs. Paper forms get lost or photographed badly. Employees leave fields blank because they do not know the answer, such as their student loan plan, and nobody explains. And the whole thing happens in the starter's first chaotic days.
The client often knows about the starter weeks before the first pay day. The details just do not start moving until the hours arrive.
What late starter details cost
Late or wrong first pay is a bad start for the employee and the client's relationship with them. The bureau spends time chasing and then correcting. Bank details copied from a photo are a fraud and error risk. And personal data passed around by email and messaging apps is exactly what should not happen with employee records.
| Detail | Common problem on paper | On a guided form |
|---|---|---|
| National Insurance number | Unreadable or missing | Format checked as typed |
| Bank details | Copied wrongly | Validated sort code and account format |
| Starter declaration | Wrong box or blank | Plain-language questions |
| Student loan plan | Left blank | Explained with options |
| Address and date of birth | Incomplete | Required fields |
How we build a starter form for a bureau
- The client adds a starter with just a name, email or mobile number, start date and role, from a simple page or by email to the bureau.
- The employee receives a secure link and completes their details on their phone, with plain explanations of each question and checks as they type.
- Where the employee has a P45 from a previous job, they photograph it and the key figures are read in for them to confirm.
- Completed details go straight to the bureau, not through the client's inbox, and appear in the intake for that client's next run.
- Incomplete forms trigger reminders to the employee, and the client and bureau see the status: invited, started, complete.
- Approved details are imported into your payroll software as a new employee record rather than typed in.
The starter declaration and other statutory information follow HMRC's forms and guidance. The form asks the questions in plain words; it does not advise the employee on their answers.
Starters paid properly from day one
Starter details arrive before the first run because the process starts when the client hires, not when hours arrive. Details are complete and legible. Bank details are validated. Employee data stops travelling by email and messaging apps. And first payslips stop being the source of so many complaints.
Does this happen with your clients?
- You find out about starters only when their hours arrive.
- Starter details come as photos of paper forms.
- First pay is often late or on a default tax code.
- Bank details have been copied wrongly from a form.
- Employee data is emailed between clients and the bureau.