Half of all UK workers won’t have enough money to retire at state pension age
Half of workers in the UK won’t have enough money to retire when they reach state pension age, according to research by Age UK.
The survey of nearly 1,000 over-40s, found nearly 8m people aged 40 to 64 will not be able to retire when they hit state pension age, which currently stands at 65.
Over a third of the people asked expected to still be working the same hours in the same job as they do now once they reach their late 60's, despite being able to officially start withdrawing their state pension before that.
A quarter expected to be in their current job but working fewer hours. Only 21 per cent did not expect to be working in their job by that point.
Of those who did expect to be working less or not at all, only 17 per cent believed they will be financially stable enough to do so. Just under a quarter thought poor health would stop them, while 28 per cent felt their job would be too physically demanding at that age.
Caroline Abrahams, charity dat Age UK, said: “Our research shows that millions of people across the country will need to continue working in some capacity past their state pension age. Some will want to and others won't.”
The current state pension age is under review and is set to rise to 67 in the next decade, with further plans to increase it to 68 by 2039. Age UK has urged a “career MOT” for people over 50 to help them adjust future plans and pension savings.
Abrahams said: “However people feel about [still working in their late 60s] there is a lot to be said for taking stock at age 50, while there is still time to make changes to how the rest of your working life and your transition to retirement are shaping up.
"With the State Pension Age continuing to rise, and people inevitably having to work longer, there is a growing need for everyone to make informed choices about training options, pension provision and future career options, in order to make a successful transition to the retirement they aspire to."