Consumers resistant to reducing pension contributions

Despite the cost of living crisis, only a minority of consumers are prepared to reduce their pension contributions, according to a study. But while only a minority of consumers plan to cut contributions advisers believe their clients will eventually be forced to adjust their contributions. That’s according to the latest Embark Investor Confidence Barometer which found that more than half - 51% - of advisers said that the majority of their clients will be forced to adjust contributions or sell investments to meet their retirement plans. Investors are resistant to trimming contributions, however, with just 14% of advised and 10% of non-advised investors surveyed prepared to reduce their pension contributions. Only 25% of advisers believed that the majority of their clients will be unaffected. The research found that 53% of surveyed advisers have seen an increase in the number of people seeking advice as a direct result of them recognising that they must do more with their savings. This is a strong signal that investors, aware of increasing economic pressures, are seeing the value of financial advice, Embark said. When it comes to advisers’ tactics in dealing with the impact of inflation, 91% of surveyed advisers have introduced inflation modelling into their advice process. The fact that 66% have done so in the last two years suggests that advisers are reacting to an economic regime change from low inflation to stickier inflation and higher rates, Embark said. Meanwhile twice as many advised as non-advised consumers surveyed - 28% against 13% - have changed their strategy to target a higher inflation-adjusted return. Jackie Leiper, chief executive of the Embark Group, said: “This is a challenging time for investors looking to strike a balance between protecting long-term savings and investments while maintaining living standards, at a time when household costs are rising steeply.” • The Embark Investor Confidence Barometer is a twice-yearly survey of 1,000 people conducted by Censuswide for Embark Group (Embark). The latest research surveyed the following groups between 7 September and 16 September: 250 advised consumers (those that have a financial adviser) with a minimum of £100,000 investible assets, who have a pension and are aged 35-70; 503 non-advised consumers (those that do not have a financial adviser), with a minimum of £100,000 investible assets, who have a pension and are aged 35-70; 251 financial advisers who have clients, whose company/firm has assets of less than £500m.

Consumers resistant to reducing pension contributions

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