Sapphire - Stockport

Harrow 2.

I used Sapphire as an umbrella company for a five month contract in the latter part of last year. Unfortunately due to a variety of service problems, I will never use them again in the future.

1. They failed to deduct the maximum pension deduction as allowed by SIPP until halfway through my contract, meaning I paid extra PAYE and Employer's NIC for those weeks.

2. At the end of my contract, I had to request my P45 three times before they emailed it to me.

3. They overcharged me their admin fees by £30 by erroneously doubling it for a few weeks. I had to calculate and summarise the whole situation after my contract ended and request a refund.

4. At the end of my contract, I got an automated email from their Managing Director asking if I would recommend Sappire to others. On clicking the NO button, it did not submit anything, meaning that only Yes answers were being forwarded to the Director.

5. I mysteriously got enrolled into Smart Pension by them, two months after they had stopped paying me because my contract had ended. I had to log onto the Smart Pension website to cancel my enrollment.

6. During my contract and after it ended, I have exchanged numerous emails with them to try and resolve these issues. I asked for some nominal compensation in this respect for my time that was wasted, but this was instantly rejected.

7. Instead of compensation I finally got an apology at the end of this frustrating experience, two months after my contract ended.

8. Throughout all of my emails and correspondence, there was no single person that took charge of my issues and saw them through to the end. They kept on passing on the issues to different people within the organisation which meant more time wasted overall.

My advice is: Go elsewhere for Umbrella company services.

Lee T.

My experience with Sapphire Payroll Services has been profoundly disappointing, marked by a consistent pattern of mismanagement, poor communication, and questionable integrity.

From the outset, Sapphire has repeatedly failed to deliver on the most fundamental aspect of their service—timely and accurate payroll processing. Payments have been delayed on multiple occasions, causing undue stress and disruption to our team. Despite raising concerns, these issues have not been resolved with any lasting effectiveness or accountability.

Equally troubling has been Sapphire’s failure to make pension contributions in line with scheduled payment dates. This is not only a breach of our agreement but also a serious compliance issue with potential legal implications for our business. The lack of urgency in addressing these violations is unacceptable.

Communication with Sapphire is virtually non-existent or evasive at best. Attempts to seek clarification or updates are often met with silence or vague reassurances that do not align with actual outcomes. In particular, interactions with a representative named Pollie have been deeply concerning. On several occasions, Pollie made promises that were later proven to be false or misleading—suggesting either a lack of knowledge or a deliberate attempt to obscure the truth.

What makes these issues even more alarming is the lack of transparency and the deceptive practices employed to mask systemic failures. Rather than taking responsibility, Sapphire appears more focused on deflecting blame and placating clients with empty assurances.

A payroll provider must be trustworthy, responsive, and above all, competent. Unfortunately, Sapphire has demonstrated none of these qualities. We strongly advise any individual or business considering their services to proceed with extreme caution. There are many other providers in the market who value integrity and client relationships—Sapphire is not one of them.

Selina C.

We have used Sapphire to run our payslips for a few years now.
I'd just like to share that Freya who isn't our usual contact but she has been patient and helpful with us today as I needed to amend our data 3 times today, and all in time so we could pay all the staff on time. Thank you very much Freya

Richard M.

Very helpful customer service. Easy to communicate with on WhatsApp. Never had any issue with Sapphire in my 3.5 years with them. Thank you for sorting my query promptly today Ciara.

Nick T.

Helpful and easy to chat to whilst using WhatsApp.
Couple of easy questions to answer and speaking to someone real within a few minutes.
Anna was the lady I spoke to, and she helped me with my enquiry smoothly.
Throughout using Sapphire I've not had any errors in my payslip either.

Rejin P.

Been a straightforward process since I joined Sapphire. Payments have always come through on time, customer service team is always available when I needed them via phone or on WhatsApp. Shout-out to Ciara for helping me today with my query. Would definitely recommend!

Ross

Contracted through Sapphire for 18 months and the entire experience was very positive. Everything was taken care of, all payments on time and correct, and any problems/questions very quickly dealt with via their WhatsApp. Took a lot of the stress out of contracting and would happily use them again in future.

Ebrima K.

Shauna has always been so helpful any time I had a query. Always there to help and I can’t express how grateful I am for your support Shauna.