More than seven in 10 UK savers believe the government is not doing enough to support people preparing for retirement following the Autumn Budget, according to new polling from Penfold.

The snap survey, completed by 340 respondents, revealed a sharp drop in saver confidence in the immediate aftermath of the Chancellor’s announcements.

The digital workplace pension provider reported that 72 per cent of savers feel the government is failing to support retirement planning. In comparison, 58.5 per cent said they felt less confident about their financial future after the Budget.

The findings point to rising anxiety driven by uncertainty over future retirement rules.

Indeed, savers highlighted concerns about increasing state pension ages, shifting regulations and fears that the state pension may not exist in its current form by the time they retire.

The Budget’s plan to cap National Insurance (NI) relief on salary sacrifice from 2029, alongside the creation of a new state pension commission, has also fuelled uncertainty.

More than a third of respondents (36.3 per cent) said they now feel unsure whether to increase or reduce their pension contributions, signalling a heightened hesitancy that Penfold described as "disruptive" to long-term planning.

Penfold CEO and co-founder, Chris Eastwood, said the results underlined how quickly confidence has been shaken.

“When more than a third of savers can’t decide whether to increase or reduce their pension contributions, it’s a clear signal that confidence has been disrupted,” he argued.

“Pension saving relies on stability and long-term decision making, and right now many people feel unable to move forward.”

Eastwood warned that recent policy signals risk deepening public mistrust.

He described the upcoming cap on salary sacrifice NI relief as “a backward step for boosting pension saving” and said revisiting the state pension through a new commission indicated the current system is “under pressure” and likely to evolve.

“For today’s savers, it reinforces a simple truth: relying on the state pension alone won’t deliver the retirement most people hope for,” he warned.

Despite the uncertainty, Eastwood stressed that core pension rules remain unchanged and that regular contributions remain key to securing a comfortable retirement.

However, he cautioned that long-term policy clarity is essential to restore trust.

“Sudden changes make it harder for people to plan and harder for the public to trust the system,” he said.

Eastwood added: “If contributions drop or planning is delayed, millions of savers could face a retirement far less secure than they expect.

This Budget highlights why private pension planning has never been more important, and why uncertainty must be addressed immediately.”

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