Retail Payroll Forensic Audit — Built on 22 years of multi-site retail experience
37% → 0% payroll error rate eliminated within 90 days in a major retail environment

Identify Hidden Cost, Compliance Risk, and Financial Exposure — Before It Becomes a Problem

Retail payroll doesn't fail because of one mistake — it fails because of how everything fits together. We conduct deep, independent forensic audits that uncover what your current setup has missed.

22+Years Experience
CIPPQualified
RetailSpecialists
Forensic Audit + Action Plan from £7,500 + VAT per entity

April 2026: The Fair Work Agency has launched — a new enforcement body with the power to investigate employers proactively, without waiting for a complaint. NMW enforcement budgets have reached £31.2 million. Penalties are 200% of arrears. Find out where you stand →

The Problems Are Already There.
Most Employers Just Don't Know It Yet.

Retail payroll doesn't fail because of one mistake — it fails because of how everything fits together.

Misclassified workers. Incorrect holiday pay for irregular staff. AWR breaches. NMW exposure from shift deductions. These issues often go unnoticed for months or years — until an enforcement body surfaces them. By then, the cost is significant.

The enforcement landscape has fundamentally changed. From April 2026, the Fair Work Agency — a powerful new single enforcement body — can investigate employers proactively, without waiting for a worker complaint. It has inherited HMRC's entire NMW enforcement team and is expanding its remit to cover holiday pay and statutory sick pay. HMRC's NMW enforcement budget has grown to £31.2 million, up from £13.2 million in 2015. Penalties now stand at 200% of arrears owed. Named-and-shamed retail brands include household names caught by technical breaches they didn't know existed.

The question for retail businesses isn't whether enforcement is increasing. It is. The question is whether your payroll will survive scrutiny.

What We Actually Do

We run a forensic audit of your retail payroll operation — focused specifically on the complexity of multi-site environments.

That means reviewing:

  • Pay structures across stores and roles
  • Holiday pay methodology for irregular workers
  • National Minimum Wage exposure
  • Retail payroll processes and controls
  • Legacy risks from historic setups

Then we:

  • Identify hidden risks and estimated exposure
  • Quantify potential liability where relevant
  • Document every issue clearly
  • Provide a structured action plan
Important: We do not fix issues during the audit — we show you exactly what needs to be fixed.

No templates. No generic advice. Just clarity on where you stand.

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Forensic Audit

Retail-specific review covering pay structures, irregular workers, NMW exposure, and legacy risks.

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Estimated Exposure

Every risk rated and, where possible, estimated exposure quantified — so you know the scale of the problem.

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Structured Action Plan

A clear, prioritised roadmap of what needs to be fixed — with legislative references and risk ratings.

A Report That Stands Up to Scrutiny

Our deliverables are built to be used — by your payroll team, finance director, legal counsel, and if necessary, HMRC. Everything documented, referenced, and ready to act on.

Full Forensic Audit Report

Comprehensive findings across all 7 compliance domains.

Risk-Rated Findings

Every issue rated Critical / High / Medium / Low.

Estimated Exposure Quantification

Where applicable, exposure calculated and documented in pounds.

Legislative References

Every finding backed by HMRC guidance or case law.

Prioritised Action Plan

A sequenced remediation roadmap your team can act on immediately.

Executive Summary

A board-ready summary for your CFO or audit committee.

Full Debrief Call

Structured walkthrough of all findings with your senior team.

Clear Pricing. No Surprises.

Priced per legal entity — per separate PAYE reference. Multi-site employers under a single PAYE scheme are not charged per site.

Entry Point

Compliance Health Check

£3,500 + VAT per entity

A focused diagnostic to identify whether compliance risk exists. Ideal as a first step before committing to a full forensic engagement.

  • 7-domain compliance review
  • Written findings report
  • Risk-rated summary
  • Debrief call included
Book a Call
Follow-On

Remediation Support

POA scoped after audit

We work alongside your team to fix the issues identified — from recalculating liabilities to correcting processes and documenting for HMRC.

  • Holiday pay back-calculation
  • NMW arrears & voluntary disclosure
  • BIK payrolling setup
  • PAYE/RTI corrections
  • Process documentation & SOPs
  • Fixed fee agreed in advance
Book a Call

Multi-entity discounts available. Get in touch to discuss →

Audit First. Fix Second.

The audit gives you a clear, independent view of your retail payroll risk. If remediation is required, that is scoped and priced separately — so you stay in control of what gets fixed, when, and at what cost.

See Our Services →
1
Audit

Independent forensic review — identifying risks and quantifying estimated exposure.

2
Action Plan

A structured, prioritised roadmap of everything that needs to be fixed.

3
Remediation (separate)

Scoped and priced separately once you understand the full picture.

Not Sure What Your Payroll Is Hiding?

Book a call. No commitment, no sales pitch — just a straight conversation about your retail payroll setup and what we might find.

Book a Call

Or email us: clientservices@globalpayrolldoctors.com