Participants of the mid-life MOT must be encouraged to take up further support through signposting and follow-ups, a new report from the Centre for Ageing Better has found.

Alternative mid-life MOT pilots run by The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS), Aviva, Legal & General and Mercer all agreed that the process was not a “one-off event” and practical outputs are imperative to “engage and benefit participants”.

The report, which brings together the findings of the four pilots, also found that it is important to understand your target audience, that age is not a fixed concept and that there is no “one size fits all” for delivery of the advice.

All pilot participants said they were “enthusiastic” in continuing to work with the government and stakeholders in order to develop the mid-life MOT further.

Centre for Ageing Better CEO, Anna Dixon, said: “For those most at risk of missing out on a good later life today’s immediate challenges make it even harder to plan ahead.

“People in mid-life could benefit from better access to information and advice to plan and prepare for their later lives. It is encouraging to see the enthusiasm from a range of organisations to try out different approaches to delivering mid-life MOTs.”

According to the report, the overall principles of the mid-life-MOT should be universal, personalised and holistic.

Furthermore, the report highlights that communication of the ‘MOT’ should be changed to ‘review’, while the full scope of who it should be offered to was still under consideration.

Both Legal & General and Aviva piloted their mid-life MOT’s on their employees, while Mercer worked with seven business to help develop a digital platform for delivery.

TPAS’s pilot, which focused on the self-employed, designed their programme around issues of; work, health, family and health.

Legal & General CEO, Chris Knight, said: “At Legal & General, we believe the mid-life MOT has the potential to break down the before and after retirement barrier. It’s a great way to kickstart retirement conversations, giving people the opportunity to take stock of their finances, career plans and health in good time.

“We’ve already trialled an MOT with our own employees, but to have a real, positive impact on society, this needs to be an everyday feature for people in their 40s and 50s.”

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