More than three-quarters (76%) of women do not believe they will have enough money to be financially comfortable in retirement, according to research by The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS).
Its third annual TPAS Women and pensions research, which surveyed 1,000 women, also found 71% of respondents do not feel confident about making decisions when saving for retirement.
It also indicated that there is some confusion about the impact of state pension changes and the rising state pension age, with 74% of respondents stating that they are unsure about what state pension they would receive. In addition, many commented the changes to the state pension age had been made too quickly.
Following the change to the state pension age, 54% of respondents have not made any changes to their retirement plans, with only 5% planning to extend their working lifetime.
Respondents with private pension plans appeared to have a greater knowledge of pensions, with, 61% knowing how much their pension will pay in retirement or where to obtain estimates of this.
Michelle Cracknell (pictured), chief executive of The Pensions Advisory Service, said: “The odds of women being able to provide for a comfortable retirement are stacked against them from the start.
“This survey confirms that there are a range of pensions issues for women, such as low levels of earnings, insufficient national insurance credits, as well as taking career breaks to have children.
“We are working on significantly expanding the information and advice available for women on how they can work towards improving their pension position. There are a number of simple actions which many can take, such as checking national insurance contributions, opting in to a workplace pension and claiming tax reliefs which can help with their pensions.”
