Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of people have said that they don’t know how much they and their employer contribute to their pension, rising to 38 per cent amongst those over 55, research from Hargreaves Lansdown has revealed.

According to the survey, 16 per cent of people said over £500 per month was being contributed to their pension, while a further 16 per cent said total monthly contributions were less than £100.

Women were also more likely to say they were unaware how much they are paying into their pension, with 29 per cent unsure, compared to 20 per cent of men.

In addition to this, the research found that only 7 per cent of higher rate taxpayers were unaware of their pension contributions, compared to 24 per cent of basic rate taxpayers.

The firm suggested that this could be down to the fact that they claim their extra pension tax relief through self-assessment every year, but it could also be because their and their employer contributions are likely to be far chunkier.

Indeed, the analysis showed that 19 per cent of higher rate taxpayers have between £401 and £500 per month going into their pension, compared to 6 per cent of basic rate taxpayers.

Commenting on the findings, Hargreaves Lansdown head of retirement analysis, Helen Morrissey, stated: “Many of us are clueless about contributions, with almost one quarter of us having no idea how much we and our employers are contributing into our pensions.

“To an extent this is understandable in that auto-enrolment sees us put into a pension automatically, but it risks leaving many with a nasty shock when they come to realise they are nowhere near funding the retirement they hoped for.

“Pensions are an important employee benefit, and the employer contribution can make a huge difference to how much you end up with and yet people are unaware of it. Many employers stick to auto-enrolment minimum contributions, but others are willing to do more and if you are able to put more into your pension then so will they."

Morrissey also stressed the need for savers to check how much they are putting into their pension savings, so they can properly prepare for retirement, warning that "if you have no idea how much you are paying in, then you may find you are some way off track with little time left to make up lost ground".

Share Story: