Two-thirds of people aged 55 and over believe financial advice should be compulsory at retirement

Two-thirds (65%) of people aged 55 and over who are not yet retired believe that it should be compulsory to receive financial advice at retirement according to findings from Retirement Advantage.

On-going advice 
More than one third (35%) of people polled said they were not comfortable managing their pension in retirement, which suggests that these people will require on-going advice through their retirement journey. Only 11% of people said they were very comfortable managing their pension in retirement.
The research also shows that 62% of people who plan to use their pension funds before retiring also think that financial advice should be compulsory. This follows the introduction of the new pension freedoms, which allow people with defined contribution pensions’ unfettered access to their savings.

Life-changing decisions 
There is a real appetite among the over 55s for financial advice not only at the point of retiring but also during retirement. People are making difficult, life-changing decisions, made all the more complex by the new pension rules. The majority of people recognise that without financial advice they may fail to realise the full implications and make decisions that end up costing them dearly.

The Pension Wise guidance service is a good starting point for people and provides those at retirement with an understanding of their new pension options. The service can help people understand the options available, but it may not be enough to help them make the choice that’s right for their personal circumstances.

Source data:
Research was conducted by ComRes with 1,000 UK residents aged 55 and over who are not retired. Data were weighted to be representative of the known profile of UK adults aged 55+ who are not retired. The fieldwork was carried out online between 27 February and 5 March 2015.

INFORMATION IS BASED ON OUR CURRENT UNDERSTANDING OF TAXATION LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS. ANY LEVELS AND BASES OF, AND RELIEFS FROM, TAXATION ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

A PENSION IS A LONG-TERM INVESTMENT. THE FUND VALUE MAY FLUCTUATE AND CAN GO DOWN. YOUR EVENTUAL INCOME MAY DEPEND UPON THE SIZE OF THE FUND AT RETIREMENT, FUTURE INTEREST RATES AND TAX LEGISLATION.