A study has suggested about 23 million people in the UK have not reviewed their pension plans at all over the past four years.
Just under two thirds (64%) of non-retired people told a survey they had not done undertaken a review and 61% admitted to not reviewing their long-term savings and investments.
The latest annual consumer research by Baring Asset Management also found 43% said they had never reviewed their retirement plans.
Only 22% said they had reviewed their investments over the past 12 months.
Rod Aldridge, head of UK wholesale distribution at Barings, said: "Our research indicates that too many people are forgetting or ignoring their retirement plans, which is concerning."
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In the 55-64 year old market segment, the survey found 53% had reviewed their retirement plans over the past four years – despite approaching the traditional age for retirement.
Some 52% said they had specifically reviewed their pensions, leaving large numbers of people with potentially the wrong asset allocation and risk profile.
Just 18% of respondents in the 54-65 age range said they were very aware of the level of risk involved in their investment portfolio, including their pensions, with a further 38% fairly aware.
Overall, 46% said they were either very or fairly aware of the level of risk involved in their investments – up from last year's survey (43%).
Mr Aldridge said: "It is absolutely vital to fully understand the asset allocation and risk profile of your retirement funds and pensions, otherwise the risk is that you could suffer from a misallocation of assets and be inappropriately invested.
"This is particularly relevant for people leading up to the traditional retirement age."
The research also found that two-fifths (41%) of non-retired people – the equivalent of 8.2 million people – opted for the default option when they reviewed their pension plans.