Nearly one in six retirement savers have never checked their pension savings – survey

Nearly one in six (16 per cent)¹ of retirement savers admit that they have never reviewed their pensions, new research from People’s Partnership² has revealed.

The survey, commissioned by the provider of The People’s Pension, also shows that nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of those questioned review their pension savings less than once every year, while a fifth (20%) check once a year and one in ten (11 per cent) said they check once every six months. The findings follow the publication of Government statistics³ which show that nearly 4 in 10 of working adults are not saving enough for their retirement.

The YouGov poll also shows that nearly half (45 per cent) of those who took part are not confident that they have put enough thought into their retirement plans, while only a quarter (25 per cent) said they were.

The poll also shows that:

• Men are nearly twice as likely (32 per cent) than women (18 per cent) to have confidence in their preparation for retirement.
• People living in the East of England and Wales are some of the least confident regions in the UK about their retirement plans.
• People living in the London were the most confident about their retirement plans.
• Nine per cent of men surveyed said they reviewed their pensions once a week or more, compared to one per cent of women.

The findings have been published to coincide with Pension Awareness Week⁴ and People’s Partnership, which provides The People’s Pension to six million UK savers, is promoting four simple steps for people to become more engaged with their pensions:

• Sign up for an online account with your pension provider.
• Make sure your personal and contact details are up to date.
• Read your annual statement, checking the projected savings your current level of contributions will give you.
• Name the person you want to benefit from your pension in the event of your early death.

Kevin Martin, Group Director of Customer Services at People’s Partnership, provider of The People’s Pension, said: “It’s clear from our research that many workers are ill-prepared for retirement, which is a concern given that we know that millions of workers are not saving  enough.

“There are simple steps that a person can take to ensure that they are better prepared for retirement, including signing up for an online pension account, naming a beneficiary, checking your annual statement and ensuring your details are updated so your provider can stay in touch.

“The findings also show that men have more confidence in their retirement arrangements than women, which is further proof of the gender pension gap which won’t be closed without government intervention.”

ENDS