Women's personal pension funds 'inadequate'

Most women in the UK think their personal pension fund will not offer them enough money in retirement.

That is according to new figures from Investec Private Bank showing 54 per cent of women with a pension fund believe it will not produce strong enough returns to provide income after they finish work.

And this figure is rising. In the last 14 months over 600,000 more women are concerned their personal and occupational pensions will not fund them in retirement.

This is a worrying figure given 60 per cent of women do not have a personal or occupational pension.

"This research shows that women must consider their retirement planning carefully," said Linda McBain, head of banking and treasury at Investec Private Bank.

"It's important to have a pension, and even more so to invest in a fund which can provide you with an adequate income in retirement."

But 19 per cent of women without a pension say it is not a priority; up from 17 per cent last year.

But there are some positive signs, with an increase in self invested personal pensions (Sipps) among women.

There has been a four per cent rise in the number of women who have taken out a Sipp since September 2005. And this has come at the expense of stakeholder pensions - with interest dropping from 17 per cent to nine per cent.

"Despite the concerns among the majority of women that their pension fund will not be sufficient for retirement, we expect to see continued interest in Sipps as the industry looks to encourage better retirement planning," said Ms McBain.