The gender pension gap sees women miss out when they retire - Sarah Ward
Although gender inequalities, both in the workplace and at home, are common, one of the most financially damaging occurrences remains largely hidden. The gender pension gap is a long-term financial divide that leaves women retiring with significantly lower pension wealth, and it is an issue that demands far greater attention.
This is not a marginal difference – it’s a structural gap that accumulates over decades, leaving many women more exposed to financial hardship in later life.
On average, retired women receive £7,600 less each year in pension income, while private pension wealth in women nearing retirement is typically half that of men’s. Amongst women aged 55 to 64 with pension savings, the gap stands at £89,000.
This gap is rooted in systemic inequalities that shape women’s working lives. Lower average earnings, a higher likelihood of part-time work, career interruptions for childcare and caring responsibilities all combine to suppress pension contributions year after year. Over time, the cumulative effect of these factors becomes deeply entrenched, only fully revealing itself as women approach retirement.
Research from investment company Mercer on behalf of now:pensions and the Pension Policy Institute shows that divorced women typically have £53,160 less in pension savings than divorced men. Women depart divorces with an average of £32,640 in pension savings, or just 39 per cent of the £85,800 retained by divorced men.
Divorce settlements involve dividing various assets, including the family home, joint bank accounts and pensions. Although the family home receives significant attention, pensions can be more valuable.
Despite their inherent value, pensions are not examined as carefully as they need to be. The 2026 Gender Pensions Gap Report revealed that 71 per cent of divorce settlements do not share pension assets.
Fair division of assets is a key question for many settlements. Yet with pensions, the combination of lack of widespread attention is the potential for them falling off the radar in proceedings. Coupled with the gender difference, this generates a risk of unequal settlements.
One of the provisions is Pension Sharing Orders, which allows for the sharing of pension assets. These are still relatively underutilised, and many women still prefer to retain more of the equity in the family home than to share pensions.
Pension Attachment Orders allow pension providers to pay a portion of a future income to former spouses, stopping if the recipient remarries. It does, though, leave a persistent financial link between exes. In addition, if the pension holder dies before the recipient, the income usually stops so these are rarely used.
Another option is to consider offsetting the value of a pension against other assets, but pension values are not equal to cash values. Considering offsetting requires expert advice to determine the long-term value.
In the absence of policy changes which can address the gender pension gap in settlements, vigilance and expert advice is key.
From a practical standpoint, women need to ensure they have full information about their pensions, a thorough audit of pension valuations and a state pension forecast. This is a useful financial health check to undertake regardless of whether divorce proceedings have commenced.
Sarah Ward is Head of Family at Ramsdens Solicitors.