Rewards and benefits packages are not understood by 75% of employees

Only one in four employees understands their benefits package, research has revealed.

A YouGov survey of more than 4,000 employees, commissioned by insurance broker the Oval group, showed how confused staff are by their benefits.

The least understood benefits are dental, income protection, childcare vouchers and critical illness cover. Six in 10 employees offered voluntary benefits rarely use them.

The most popular way of improving employee understanding of benefits would be to provide a statement showing the total reward package.

Seven in 10 employees said they would use the internet for financial advice, which was twice as popular as any other information source.

Chris Metz, head of employee benefits at Oval Financial Service, said: “Many companies are still getting it wrong

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“Providing a bells-and-whistles reward package is just not enough. A company needs to know exactly what their employees really want, otherwise they are just throwing away millions of pounds with little return on their investment.”