40% of savers unsure how much to save for retirement

Only a minority (16 per cent) of UK employees are confident that the amount they are currently saving is sufficient for retirement, while 40 per cent of workers have little or no idea how much they need to save for retirement, according to research from Royal London.

The survey found that a further 46 per cent of savers are “fairly confident”, while a "significant proportion" (37 per cent) are not confident.

However, the research found that two fifths (43 per cent) of those who were confident they will have a secure income for the duration of their retirement are currently saving 5 per cent or less of their annual gross income.

In addition to this, Royal London warned that the 'set and forget' approach utilised by auto enrolment can leave many unsure of how much they’re currently saving, with 15 per cent unsure how much they and their employer are collectively contributing to their pension.

One in five (20 per cent) workers also admitted to having never checked their pension savings.

Royal London warned that while now might not be the right time, without a plan to increase pension savings levels in the future, today’s cost-of-living crisis could be repeated in retirement.

Royal London director of policy & external affairs, Jamie Jenkins, argued that it is "therefore crucial that we set out a clear plan to raise retirement saving to more adequate levels in future".

“Saving for later life through your employer may be embedded into the DNA of the UK pensions system, thanks to automatic enrolment, but we need to be realistic about setting the right level of saving to achieve the retirement people aspire to," she continued.

“For most people, saving at the minimum of around 8 per cent of their salary won’t be enough to give them the kind of retirement that they want.

"Older workers often look back on their working life with regret that they didn’t take more responsibility for their financial future sooner – either starting saving earlier or putting a bit more away than they did.”

“Starting to save for retirement as early as possible gives you the best chance of building up a bigger pot over as long a period as possible.”

    Share Story:

Recent Stories


Private markets – a growing presence within UK DC
Laura Blows discusses the role of private market investment within DC schemes with Aviva Director of Investments, Maiyuresh Rajah

The DB pension landscape 
Pensions Age speaks to BlackRock managing director and head of its DB relationship management team, Andrew Reid, about the DB pensions landscape 

Podcast: Who matters most in pensions?
In the latest Pensions Age podcast, Francesca Fabrizi speaks to Capita Pension Solutions global practice leader & chief revenue officer, Stuart Heatley, about who matters most in pensions and how to best meet their needs
Podcast: A look at asset-backed securities
Royal London Asset Management head of ABS, Jeremy Deacon, chats about asset-backed securities (ABS) in our latest Pensions Age podcast

Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement