A third (32%) of UK staff do not feel confident that they will reach retirement with a comfortable income, rising to 48% of workers aged 45-54, according to research by consultancy Barnett Waddingham, part of Howden.
Its survey of 2,002 UK employees found that 40% of those aged 55 years and above report a significant lack of confidence in their financial future. This has increased from 2024, when 42% of those aged 45-54 years and 37% of those aged 55 and above were not confident they would retire with a comfortable income.
More than a quarter (28%) have not set any goals for their retirement, up from 13% in 2024. Meanwhile, 17% of those expecting to retire within the next decade have no retirement goals.
Over a quarter (27%) of male respondents expressed retirement income concerns, while 42% of female respondenrs said the same.
More than half (58%) are worried about losing track of their various pension pots or the total value of their savings. Despite this, 19% have never logged in to view the value of their pension and more than a quarter (27%) of those planning to retire in less than a year have never logged in to view their pension value
Some 27% check their accounts on a regular annual basis and 53% check their accounts multiple times a year.
Mark Futcher, head of DC at Barnett Waddingham, said: “For many workers, retirement planning can feel a bit like staring at a foggy horizon. Pensions needn’t be a mystery, and small, steady habit changes can help change the direction of travel. And where employers offer matched contributions, failing to take the full amount can compound into something far more powerful over time.
“More often than not, workers can be unaware of the full extent of support tools they are paying for, but not taking advantage of, such as free guidance, pension transfer tools and more. Employers and providers need to make tools easier to find, easier to understand and easier to act on. Improving retirement outcomes is a shared effort, and when everyone pulls in the same direction, the journey becomes far clearer.”
