Only 27% of people said they were not reliant on their partner’s pension, according to new research.

Almost a third, 31%, of men said they were not at all reliant on their partner’s pension compared to just over a fifth, 22%, of women.

A fifth, 19%, of respondents to the survey by Hargreaves Lansdown said they had a similar size pension to their partner, so they needed each other.

Some 14% said their partner had the biggest pension so they would pay most of the costs in retirement.

Just over one in 10, 11%, said they had a larger pension than their partner but were still partially reliant on them. One in 20, 5%, people surveyed said they didn’t have a pension at all.

Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said it’s important that someone is not overly reliant on their partner’s pension, because if the worst were to happen and they part ways, it could leave them very close to retirement with little in the way of pension.

She said it’s a risk for a lot of people. “Only just over a quarter of people saying they were not reliant on their partner’s pension. Men were far more likely to say they would be ok, compared to women.”

She said it's an issue that should get better with the introduction of auto-enrolment, as more people are now saving into a pension.

She said it’s important that pensions are considered as part of any divorce settlement. Ms Morrissey said: “Other assets such as the family home often take centre stage in discussions but pensions should also be included. There are several ways that pensions can be divided up between partners if needed.”

• The survey of 1,300 people was carried out by Opinium on behalf of HL in May.