Nearly a quarter of working people have given no thought to how they will survive financially once they have retired, a survey carried out by Capita has revealed
Younger adults were more likely to be unprepared for retirement, with more than a third (35%) of those aged 24-35 saying they 'haven't thought about' how they will fund their retirement.
But the survey found that 13% of 45-54-year-olds and 5% of 55-64-year-olds had also given no thought to the matter.
Half of the 3,000 adults polled by Capita Employee Benefits said they planned to live wholly or mostly off their state pension, and a further 16% (19% of women and 14% of men) said they planned to live off their partners' state pension.
The most popular age range for planned retirement was 61-65, despite the state pension age being 67 for most cohorts. Nearly a quarter of the people surveyed said they planned to retire closer to state retirement age, between 66 and 70. Around about the same amount (23%) are hoping to retire by 60.
In terms of planned income, around a third (36%) think they will need at least £1,500 a month to live on and around a quarter (26%) think they will need more than £2,000 a month. This is despite the state pension bringing in only around £600 a month.
Other ways people said they would fund their retirement included selling their home (11%), moving somewhere cheaper, either in the UK or overseas (11%), inheritance (8%) and part-time work (7%).
Commenting on the findings, David Tildsley, director at Capital Employee Benefits, said: 'There seems to be a considerable gap between how and when people expect to retire and the ways they are making provision to do so.
'Too many are still relying wholly or predominantly on the state pension, or a spouses' state pension, in spite of the fact that demographics suggest that this may well be unsustainable by the time many retire. Even more shockingly many, including one in five of those aged 45 or older, are refusing to even think about it.'
He added that auto-enrolment would help focus peoples' minds on retirement planning.
