Pensions gender gap widens

Tuesday, 13 October 2009 07:54

Only 47 per cent of women are saving adequately for their retirement, compared to 59 per cent of men.

Furthermore 26 per cent of women who could and, according to Scottish Widows, should be saving for retirement are not doing so - compared to 15 per cent of men.

And the gap between male and female pension saving is widening.

Ian Naismith, head of pensions development at Scottish Widows, said: "During the economic downturn overall pensions savings have increased, but this is mainly among men and the gender gap has actually widened compared to last year.

"The golden rule is that people should save 12 per cent of their income to ensure they have an adequate retirement. While many women focus on the present it is key that they also need to plan for their futures as well."

The research found higher levels of unsecured debt among women as a barrier to saving - as the recession pushed people to towards clearing debt over saving.

Covering the costs of family also held back women - with 24 per cent of mothers saying they stopped pension saving because of their children.

However, women are more conscious than men about the need to save for retirement - with 28 per cent of women without a pension knowing they needed to save, compared to 24 per cent of men.

"Although it is encouraging that women have the desire to put more aside for retirement, this doesn't seem to be translating into actual increased savings," Mr Naismith said.

"Year-on-year our findings have exposed women as the pensions underdogs and in a climate when people need to be saving more than ever for their futures, it is worrying that women over 50 are actually saving less than previous years."

He added the pensions industry and the government needed to be more aware of the way women save - often interrupted by family commitments.

"While progress has been made in this area there is still more than needs to be done such as placing more value on workplace pensions and enabling women to access funds before retirement which would better suit their lifestyles," Mr Naismith explained.

"While many women put their families first they need to take time to think about themselves and their needs when planning for retirement."

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