ARE YOU RETIREMENT CONFIDENT?

While everyday financial pressures can make saving challenging, it’s imperative not to neglect your pension and retirement plan. Diligent planning at the earliest opportunity can make all the difference between enjoying a comfortable retirement and enduring a regretful one. After all, you reap what you sow.

Avoiding retirement regrets

Over the years, research has highlighted how people have tendencies to leave retirement planning too late and harbour regrets at not saving more diligently across their working lives. A recent survey (1) revealed that one in five people expect to leave planning for their retirement until they are aged at least 60. Another study (2) found almost half of over-50s regret not saving into a pension sooner, and nearly two thirds wished they had made larger contributions at an earlier stage. These findings vividly highlight the need for more people to take control and prioritise retirement planning earlier.

Blind spots

Research (3) has laid bare the cost of being kept in the dark on key pension details, with over three quarters of people not knowing how much they pay in pension fees. While one third of pension holders are unaware of their pension’s risk profile, a similar proportion of them are invested in low-risk funds. This lack of awareness regarding investment choices, fees and investment has been estimated to cost an average pension holder around £120,000 over their working life.

Engagement gap

The lack of engagement has led the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association and the Association of British Insurers to launch an industry campaign aimed

at improving people’s understanding of pensions. Due to run this autumn and winter, the campaign will attempt to raise awareness of various pension-related issues so that more people can enjoy a better standard of living during their retirement.

Reap what you sow

We can help you take control to ensure you are able to enjoy the happy and fulfilling retirement you deserve.

(1 HL 2022), (2 Aviva, 2022), (3 interactive investor, 2022)