A survey of 1,500 British people by Schroders Personal Wealth found that 51 per cent were “not aware at all” of upcoming changes.
‘Half’ of UK adults unaware of state pension shake-up coming next year
State pensioners risk a shake-up to the pension system but “half of UK adults are unware”. A survey of 1,500 British people by Schroders Personal Wealth found that 51 per cent were “not aware at all” of upcoming changes.
These include the increase in the state pension age next year, the inclusion of pensions within inherited estates from 2027 and the rise in the age allowing access to a tax-free lump sum from 2028.
Alex Gaita, director of financial planning at SPW, said these changes were not just technical but “deeply personal . . . they affect when people can stop working, how much they can afford to spend, and what they can leave behind”.
READ MORE NS&I warning for anyone with over £350 invested in Premium Bonds
“The state pension is a particular blind spot, since it’s rather complicated, and people simply don’t believe they need to even consider it until much older,” said Rob Morgan, chief analyst at Charles Stanley, an investment manager.
Just 15 per cent of people surveyed by SPW said they “fully understood” the tax rules around passing on pensions to beneficiaries when they die, and have planned their finances accordingly.
That is despite 29 per cent saying they planned to pass part or all of their pensions to family members or heirs.
Sir Steve Webb, partner at consultancy LCP and former Liberal Democrats and Conservative Party coalition government pensions minister, said the increase in the age at which you can access workplace or personal pensions without a tax penalty from 55 to 57 — effective from April 6 2028 — was a “real cliff edge” for financial planning.
“There is no doubt that there are some changes to the pensions landscape where final decisions have been taken, which have a direct effect on consumers, and where public awareness is still at a low level,” he went on and said.