More than two-fifths (42 per cent) of Brits do not know the value of their accumulated pension pots, research from Aviva has found.

Furthermore, nearly a quarter (23 per cent) were unaware of what type of pension they hold and 40 per cent did not know how much they should be saving into a pension to have the lifestyle they desire in retirement.

Six in 10 did not know how much their pots would equate to as a retirement income or annuity, with this figure increasing to 67 per cent of 44-54 year olds and 69 per cent of women.

Less than a third (28 per cent) were saving at least 12 per cent of salary into a pension each month.

Aviva found that people were more likely to know the value of their house (58 per cent), car (55 per cent) and television (63 per cent) than the value of their pension.

The firm detailed three ‘rules of thumb’ for pension saving: actively saving for retirement at least 40 years before retirement date, saving at least 12 per cent of salary into a pension, and aiming to have the equivalent of 10 times of salary in a pension by retirement.

A third (33 per cent) of those surveyed said they do not do any of the three rules of thumb, with 23 per cent trying to save for 40 years, 28 per cent saving at least 12 per cent of salary and 15 per cent aiming to have the equivalent of 10 times their salary saved for retirement.

“There is no silver bullet that will help us short circuit the journey into retirement,” commented Aviva head of savings and retirement, Alistair McQueen.

“But that does not mean we are powerless to act. The most positive action we can take today is to take control of our savings - consider where we want to get to in retirement and understand where we are starting from. We can then plan how to bridge the gap.

“It’s never too late to start saving and planning.”

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