80% of Britons unhappy with monthly pension savings

More than four in five (83%) Britons are unhappy with the amount they save into their pension every month, according to new research from pension communications company Pension Geeks. Three out of 10 people over-55 say they are unsure if they’ll be able to retire on their current savings and one in four people (25%) regret not starting to save earlier in life.The research also found a lack of pension knowledge among UK adults, with fewer than one in 10 (9%) confident that they have a thorough understanding. Almost nine in ten (86%) think that there is not enough information about pensions available to them and a quarter (25%) believe that the information that is available is too complicated to understand. The findings come after the latest Scottish Widows Retirement Report revealed the number of people saving adequately for retirement has stalled at 56% for the third year in a row, with almost a fifth (18%) of the UK adult population saving nothing at all, more than 9m people.Jonathan Bland, co-founder of pension communications company Pension Geeks, said: “Our research has uncovered some thought-provoking findings on the state of pensions and pension awareness in the UK. “With annual figures from Scottish Widows revealing a worrying stagnation in retirement savings, the reality is that many face not having enough in their pension pots to secure a decent income for the future.” To help raise awareness Pension Geeks and partner, Scottish Widows are today embarking on a five-day tour of some of the UK’s major cities in the lead up to Pension Awareness Day on 15 September. Starting in Edinburgh today (11 September), the blue Pension Awareness Campaign bus will stop in central locations in Leeds, Birmingham and Cardiff, before heading to London’s Southbank to mark the big day. On board the bus will be pensions experts from Scottish Widows and Pension Wise. The campaign is also supported by Nest and JLT. Mr Bland added: “Pension Geeks’ aim is to change the way people think about pensions and to inspire the financial industry to do something different when it comes to helping people.” Robert Cochran, a pensions expert at Scottish Widows, said: “Automatic enrolment has undoubtedly been a success for millions of UK adults who have started saving towards retirement for the first time. In fact, since the initiative was introduced in 2012 our research shows that the number of people saving adequately for retirement has increased from 45% to 56%. However, as the level of saving has stalled over the past few years it is obvious even more needs to be done across the industry to better educate people on the importance of putting away as much as they can towards retirement. “In particular, we must better engage with the younger generation through technology and information that can be made readily available and easy to digest. We’re therefore delighted to be supporting this campaign with Pension Geeks, helping as many people across the country with questions or concerns they have about their retirement savings. The pension awareness bus will be at the following locations from 10am-6pm. • Mon 11th Sept - Edinburgh, Castle Street • Tues 12th Sept - Leeds, Briggate • Wed 13th Sept - Birmingham Bull Ring, Rotunda Square • Thurs 14th Sept - Cardiff, Churchill Way

80% of Britons unhappy with monthly pension savings

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