Employees in the UK are turning to informal or unregulated sources for pension support, while others are not taking any action at all, research from Wealth at Work has shown.

Its study of workers with defined contribution pensions found that 14 per cent had not sought any pension guidance at all.

Among those who had sought pension support, 28 per cent relied on informal guidance from friends, family, colleagues, AI tools or online forums, rather than trusted or regulated sources.

This trend was supported by findings from Mintel, which found 30 per cent of adults rely on finfluencers or AI tools to support their learning when making financial decisions.

Wealth at Work warned that, as these sources operate outside UK regulation, accuracy was not guaranteed and accountability was limited.

This raised concerns about the risk of misinformation and poor outcomes when making retirement planning decisions, the firm added.

Its study also found that workplace support remained underutilised, with 12 per cent of employees turning to their employer for pension guidance, compared to 25 per cent going to their pension provider.

Despite this, the research highlighted growing demand for support, with 23 per cent of workers wanting financial education and one-to-one support from their employer.

However, 30 per cent said they felt unsupported by their workplace, up from 26 per cent last year, which Wealth at Work said indicated a widening gap between the support employees feel they get and what they current access.

“Employees clearly want more help with their pensions, but many are not accessing reputable sources,” commented Wealth at Work director, Jonathan Watts-Lay.

“This can present significant risks, especially if important decisions are based on informal or unverified information found online - particularly given the rise of ‘finfluencers’.

“What’s striking is that while workplace support may often already be in place, it’s not being fully utilised.

“This raises important questions around awareness, accessibility, relevance and engagement - whether employees know what support is available, and whether it is delivered in a way that feels relevant and easy to act on.”

Watts-Lay noted that new legislation was placing greater focus on how people are supported at retirement, which highlighted the increasing importance of effective workplace support.

“As unregulated sources become more prominent, it’s increasingly important that employers reinforce their role as trusted sources of support, helping employees make informed decisions about their retirement,” he added.

“Working with trusted workplace providers can play a key role in delivering this effectively.”

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