Overview

• Britons’ preferred retirement age holds at 62, but the age they expect to stop work has risen to 67 from 66 last year, widening the expectation gap to five years.
• Less than a third expect the Triple Lock to endure and only a little over half believe the State Pension will still be available for all, with fewer than one in five correctly naming the current age of 66.
• Only 30% say they are living comfortably and just 15% put pension saving among their top financial priorities, while almost half feel their retirement finances are out of control and over a third foresee a worse standard of living than today’s retirees.
• Younger savers show overconfidence in auto-enrolment as three in five Gen Z believe minimum contributions will suffice, yet only around one in three defined contribution savers have increased payments beyond the minimum.
• The gap varies widely across groups, rising to more than six years for renters and 5.9 years in the North East, and narrowing for higher earners and those with defined benefit pensions.