The government has been urged to develop a blueprint for supporting those retiring in the 2050s "before it is too late", after research from Aviva revealed that 52 per cent of 32-40-year-olds don't know where to start when it comes to retirement planning.

According to the research, almost 3.4 million 32-40 year olds saving into their defined contribution (DC) pension could accumulate £225,000 or more in pension savings by the time they retire in 2050.

However, Aviva noted that whilst a significant amount, this wealth is unlikely to provide a moderate retirement income according to the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) Retirement Living Standards.

Indeed, the survey also found that while 19 per cent of savers feel completely or somewhat prepared in terms of how they will fund their retirement, most (64 per cent) do not know how much they need to save into a pension to realise their desired retirement income level.

Furthermore, while the majority of UK adults yet to retire (72 per cent) said they want unbiased advice, just one in ten (10 per cent) of those on middle incomes retiring in the 2050s have taken advice in practice.

Given this, Aviva highlighted the findings as demonstration of the support this new mass market of DC savers will need to navigate incredibly complex decisions about how to convert their pension wealth into a decent income stream throughout retirement.

In particular, it argued that updating professional support will be "key" to this, arguing that the industry needs to deliver more effective, personalised communications and guidance, and develop a new approach to whole-of-retirement planning.

To make this a reality, Aviva urged the government to set a policy ambition that DC pension savers (particularly those retiring on more than £200,000 pension pot) take up some form of professional advice.

It also urged the government to focus the current review of the advice framework on what support is needed to properly serve this new mass market, and to remove regulatory barriers to allow providers and other regulated entities to deliver more effective support.

Aviva also called for the development of a new approach to whole-of-retirement planning and support, including guidelines for the effective management of DC wealth throughout the whole of retirement, and Later-Life MOTs to engage retirees at critical decision points.

More broadly, Aviva argued that the government needs to outline a "clear roadmap" for expanding auto-enrolment, including plans to sustainably increase minimum pension contributions above 8 per cent.

It also stressed the need to deliver Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP), highlighting this as a "significant opportunity" to help people make sense of their retirement savings and take action to optimise their chances of good retirement outcomes.

Aviva CEO of UK & Ireland life, Doug Brown, stated: “The pension landscape has changed significantly over the past decade, but the introduction of important initiatives like automatic enrolment in 2012 and pension freedoms in 2015 have not yet been matched by the wider support needed to help people make the most of the opportunities available to them. This needs to change and change quickly if we are to help future retirees.

“Almost 3.4 million people are expected to retire in the 2050s with accumulated pension pots of more than £225,000.

"The vast majority of these will need financial advice, and everyone will need robust, well-designed professional support in their decision-making and planning, but the majority say they have no idea where to begin.

“Despite this, there is no clear vision of the support people need, and consequently policy is piecemeal and insufficient – leaving savers at risk from poor decisions.

"Government, regulators, and industry need to work together to develop a blueprint of the support that pension savers need and take steps to put that support in place, so future retirees are able to make better decisions and achieve more positive retirement outcomes.”

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