More than a quarter (29 per cent) of the UK have no idea how many pension pots they have, believing they probably have around £13,303 sitting across three “lost” plans, research from Moneyfarm has revealed.
This echoes similar figures released by the Pensions Policy Institute which estimated that as many as 3.29mn pension pots worth £31.1bn remain unclaimed in the UK.
Moneyfarm also warned that having multiple different pots is “inevitably” hard to keep track of, leading to feelings of worry and frustration for 27 per cent of the nation.
Yet, worryingly, 18 per cent say they are unconcerned because they believe there is plenty of time to track them down in later life.
Moneyfarm pensions technical expert, Carina Chambers, said: “Pensions are not easy to keep track of over a lifetime, so it’s quite common for one, if not more, to get overlooked and forgotten about, with the average person having three lost pensions containing around £13,000.
“If you are one of these people, then the first thing you need to do is learn how to find lost pensions so as to maximise your savings for retirement.
“Combining your old pensions could help you streamline your retirement planning and keep your savings on track, but this is something you need to deal with regularly, not just when you’re getting nearer to retirement.
“You will need to be armed with as much information as possible, such as your National Insurance number, date of birth, pension plan number, and employment dates.
“You then have the option of trying to track down your pensions on your own or through the Government’s Pension Tracing Service who will tell you where your pensions are and then you can contact the providers directly.”
Additionally, Moneyfarm cautioned that, while annual statements from any workplace or private pension provider should be issued, if you move home and do not update your pension provider, statements can easily go missing.
This, coupled with the number of jobs we hold over a lifetime, are the main reasons people lose track of old pensions - and the more pensions you have, the more admin, and the harder it is to stay on top of it all.
The research also went on to reveal that only 15 per cent of people instinctively inform their pension provider when they change address.
In comparison, 74 per cent will notify their bank, 62 per cent will inform their doctors, 51 per cent their local authority, and 50 per cent their energy suppliers in a timely fashion.
tom.dunstan@ft.com
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