Employees expect to work beyond the new default retirement age of 66 with 40% planning to work past the age of 70 according to research conducted by Friends Provident.
Out of the 1,200 people that look part in the report Visions of Britain 2020: Ageing and retirement, 32% do not have a pension.
When respondents were asked at what age they think they will retire, it was found that the average worker
expected to retire at 67 years of age. Conversely, when asked what age they would like to retire, the average response was 62.2 – meaning a 4.8 year gap between the age at which people would like to retire and the age they think they will actually retire.
The findings also demonstrated varied expectations when it comes to the length of working life across the country, with people in Nottingham expecting to retire the latest (aged 68.4), while employees in Birmingham and Wales expect to retire at 65.6, before the new default retirement age. Meanwhile people in Leeds said 66.8 and Scots said 66.4.
Trevor Matthews, CEO Friends Provident Holdings (UK) said: "It is interesting to compare the various levels of awareness about later life across the country, and it is clear that people are more accepting of the fact that
they will have to work longer.
"As individuals we now have more choices, but coupled with this comes increased responsibility and the need to plan adequately for retirement. It is crucial that we do this planning early enough in life whilst we have more options available to us rather than waiting until we reach our mid 60s when the only stark choices might be to keep working into our 70s or accept a lower than expected standard of living in retirement."
However for many, working longer is a positive decision with 24% of respondents fearing they will get bored when they stop working and 52% stating that they enjoy the social contact that comes from being in a working environment.
For more articles on retirement and pensions
