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Average saver is £34,000 short as pension resilience falls

Average saver is £34,000 short as pension resilience falls
Rosie Murray-West
Written By:
Posted:
20/01/2025
Updated:
20/01/2025

The percentage of those on track for a moderate retirement has fallen slightly, due to inflation outstripping pension savings.

Figures from Hargreaves Lansdown show that the percentage of households on track for this type of retirement has fallen to 36.4% from 38% six months ago.

The Pension and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) describes a moderate retirement as one where you have one foreign holiday per year and eat out a few times per month. It says you need a single income of £31,300 to achieve this, or £43,100 for a couple.

The Hargreaves Lansdown figures show that the average household’s savings are £31,546 short of the amount needed to give them a moderate standard of living in retirement, but there are large variations across the country.

Regional variations

Wokingham, the most resilient local authority, has a pension gap of £265, while households in Kingston upon Hull (the least financially resilient authority overall) are an average of £54,641 short of what they need for a moderate retirement.

Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said the drop in retirement resilience is due to inflation, with low- to middle-income households the hardest hit.

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“The cost-of-living crisis has had a bruising impact on our finances, which many households are still grappling with,” she added.

She said that closing the gap could partly be done with Government help, highlighting moves to reduce lost pensions and deal with the proliferation of small pots, while there was also the option to increase auto-enrolment minimums beyond 8%.

“Let’s not forget the plight of the self-employed, either. This is a group that lags behind when it comes to retirement provision and we are concerned by recent reports that Government is considering the future of the Lifetime ISA. This is a product that could play a major part in boosting the retirement resilience of this group, who may need a more flexible solution than a pension,” she said.