One third of retirees are approaching retirement with trepidation as they believe poor provision will lead them to an early grave, according to Club Vita.

The longevity comparison club for pension funds, established by Hymans Robertson, conducted a survey which also found that more than half of respondents believe they have not saved enough money for their retirement years.

Only one in 20 Brits are sure that they have enough money stashed away for their retirement, and nearly half of respondents are relying on their own personal efforts to provide financial support for these later years. In addition, 56 per cent of Brits surveyed believe stress will affect how long they live. The least confident age group was found to be those aged 25 to 35 years old.

Somewhat alarmingly for employers, just 13 per cent say their company pension scheme will have the single, most positive effect on their comfort in retirement.

"Many people believe poor retirement provision could shorten their lives and in a sense they are right, since personal wealth has an important influence on how long we live," commented Nick Flint, chief executive of Club Vita. "Club Vita's own analysis of one million people receiving company pensions shows that those who are more affluent - whether by salary earnings or retirement income - live longer."

Flint said that the results illustrate retirees' fears, with men retiring on a salary of more than £35,000 living on average four years longer than those earning below £15,000 a year.

"However, it's worth noting that having a higher salary is not the same as having made ample provision for retirement," he said. "And having a small pension from a single scheme isn't always the same as having made poor provision for retirement.

"Our nationwide poll shows clearly that the public are in tune with several of the factors that influence longevity, but are pension trustees?"

Weakening economic conditions and falling interest rates as issues for pension schemes, adding to the cost of living longer. "Each additional year of life expectancy results in additional costs of around £15m for a typical £500m fund."

The research for Club Vita was conducted online by Opinion Matters/TIckbox.net. Between 13 November 2008 and 19 November 2008, a representative sample of 1,815 UK adults aged 16 plus was surveyed.

- Pensions Age January 2009

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