Research reveals a worrying trend in planning for retirement

A study commissioned by Baring Asset Management, the global investment management firm, suggests that 44 per cent of people do not expect to use a pension to fund their retirement.

The research indicates that many people expect to rely on property, cash and even an inheritance to support them after they retire.

The number of people who believe that cash will form part of their retirement planning increased from 26 per cent in the last survey in 2011 to 29 per cent today.

The number that selected property as forming part of their retirement fund also increased two percentage points to 29 per cent, according to the research.

Marino Valensise, chief investment officer at Barings, said: “It is very surprising to see just how varied retirement funding sources have become for many people in the UK.

“While diversification is crucial to best-practice asset management, the suitability of some of these sources can be questioned, such as a reliance on inheritance.

“Overall, the most challenging finding is that nearly half of the adult UK population admit to not having a formal pension at all.”

One in ten (11 per cent) respondents, the equivalent of 4.1 million people, stated that their property is their ‘pension’ and they have no other pension provision apart from their property.

Mr Valensise said: “It is astounding that over one in 10 people have focused all of their retirement planning on property.

“This suggests poor planning in terms of asset allocation, and a poor understanding of the risks involved, by large numbers of people in the UK. Assets such as cash and property, and instruments such as ISAs and investment trusts, can play an active role in retirement planning if managed correctly.

“For those people that have put aside assets for retirement, it is critical to make sure that these are allocated effectively and efficiently, properly adjusted for risk and with a clear understanding of the timescale involved.”

The research was conducted online by ICM research on behalf of Baring Asset Management on 1,567 non-retired British adults between June 29 and July 1.