Man who checked his pension to find surprise £70,000 urges people to check their pensions, as only a third do

• Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) reveals that only one in three people are checking their pension annually.

• Only just under one in five adults are talking about their pensions with friends and family, but those who do talk about money reap the rewards of doing so.

• This news is shared as part of MaPS’s annual campaign, Talk Money WeekOpens in a new window, encouraging people to have more open conversations about money.

• “No matter how you do it, make sure you’re checking your pension, and talk to people about it”, says MaPS.

• Use the MoneyHelper Pension CalculatorOpens in a new window to see what your pension means for you.

Despite being the two highest 'actions' people said they had taken to manage their pension, only one in three UK adults aged 18-65 have checked their pension in the last year, either by reading their annual statement or logging onto an online platform. 

Additional results found that only just under one in five people have discussed their pensions with friends, family, or colleagues in the last 12 months. 

In releasing this data, MaPS is hoping to not only encourage people to check their pensions, but also to talk about money with friends and family. This is in line with Talk Money WeekOpens in a new window; MaPS’ annual campaign, encouraging people to have more open conversations around money. 

MaPS research shows that those who do talk about money make better financial decisions and feel less stressed or anxious and more in control. 

*Richard, aged 56, from Southampton had never checked his pension. Upon doing so, he discovered that he had saved nearly £70,000 in his pension pot. 

He says: "I didn't check my pension, so it was a huge surprise to find out how much money I had saved. I can now start planning for my retirement in a very different way.  

“I would encourage anybody who hasn't checked, to find out how much is in their pension, and talk to your friends and family about it – I'll be telling everyone I know to make sure they check their pension from now on." 

Richard’s story isn’t surprising, noting that MaPS research shows that nearly half of Brits find pensions confusing, and two in five say they don’t know where to start when it comes to retirement planning. 

Once you have checked your pension you can then use the MoneyHelper Pension CalculatorOpens in a new window to really find out what your pension pot means for your retirement. 

Jackie Spencer, Head of Money and Pensions Policy at the Money and Pensions Service, says: 

“You can’t start being engaged with your pension too early, so whatever your age, make sure that you check your pension, and talk to people about it. 

“Once you know how much you have and how much your current contributions are, you can begin taking additional actions. These might include potentially paying more if you can, or simply using the MoneyHelper Pension CalculatorOpens in a new window to find out what your pension savings means for your future. 

“No matter how you do it; whether you read your annual statement, contact your pension provider by phone, or log onto your online pension platform, make sure to check your pension, and encourage others to do the same.” 

To find out what your pension savings mean for your future, use MoneyHelper’s Pension CalculatorOpens in a new window. 

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• *Richard is not his real name. This name has been altered to protect the individual’s identity. 
• Data has been gathered from a survey conducted by the Money and Pensions Service. 
• Results are based on 5,000 working age adults (aged 18-65) across the UK, nearly 4,000 of which have contributed to a pension.  The data was weighted to be representative of the UK population.  
• Interviewing was conducted using a mixture of online and face-to-face practices during summer 2024.  
• MaPS research showing that there are benefits to talking about money are from MaPS’ Financial Wellbeing Survey 2021. 

• Talk Money Week is an opportunity for everyone to come together and get involved with events and activities across the UK designed to increase people’s sense of financial wellbeing by encouraging them to open up about personal finance.
• This year’s campaignOpens in a new window will take place from 4-8 November 2024 to encourage people across the UK to ‘Do One Thing’ that could help improve their financial wellbeing.
• It doesn’t need to be huge – all that matters is that we get people talking about money together.