Forty seven per cent of women in Great Britain who are not retired (8.7 million) do not have a
pension, reveals new research from Baring Asset Management (Barings).
The total number of women who have yet to retire without a pension is increasing year-on-year, as the corresponding figures in 2009 and 2008 were 40 per cent and 39 per cent respectively.
Equally alarming says Barings is the fact that the research shows that more than one in five (22 per cent) non-retired adults aged 55 - 64 does not have a
pension.
The asset manager's research reveals that there are over one million people aged 65 or over who have not yet retired, but it warns that this number could increase dramatically as a result of so many people not having
pension plans.
The findings reveal that the message about the need to start saving for retirement as soon as possible is being ignored by many people. Four out of ten people aged 25 - 34 don't have a pension plan, and the figure for those aged 35 - 44 is one in three (32 per cent).
On a regional basis, Barings' research reveals that 47 per cent of people in the North West are without a
pension plan - the highest percentage for any part of the country. The corresponding figure for Wales is 27 per cent, the lowest for Britain.
Given these findings it is perhaps not surprising to find that 12 per cent of non-retired people plan to use their property as their pension. The corresponding figure in 2009 was eight per cent.
"Our findings are very worrying,” said Marino Valensise, Chief Investment Officer at Barings.
“With the demise of defined benefit pension plans and the fact that life expectancy is increasing, people need to save more for their retirement and start sooner.
“However, our research suggests that increasingly, retirement will be seen as a luxury for people as opposed to a right, and many more will be forced to work beyond their 65th birthday in order to maintain their standard of living."
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