Savers could be missing out on more than £23,000 at retirement, as almost two-fifths (37 per cent) of people think they have a missing pension pot, increasing to 64 per cent for 18-34 year olds, according to research from PensionBee.

The provider warned that this could equate to at least £37bn in lost or dormant pension pots, with a further 9 per cent of respondents stating that they have at least two missing pots.

The survey revealed that almost a third (29 per cent) of savers have lost track of at least one pension pot after changing jobs, whilst a further 29 per cent had forgotten online login details, and 22 per cent lost essential paperwork related to their pension.

It highlighted the findings as part of a growing national trend of ambivalence towards future financial planning, citing a recent government prediction that there could be as many as 50 million lost and dormant pension pots by 2050.

Indeed, the research also found that more than a quarter (27 per cent) of respondents did not know how many pension pots they have, while the majority (82 per cent) do not know how much is in their pension, and 32 per cent have never checked their pension value at all.

Commenting on the findings, PensionBee CEO, Romi Savova, stated: “It is very concerning to see so many people losing track of their hard-earned money, especially as they plan for their retirement.

“Our research has shown that the pandemic has contributed to even more pension pots becoming lost over the past year, with the number of dormant pension pots increasing from 16.3 million in 2019 to over 21.5 million in 2020.

“If left unclaimed, this will result in millions of people working for more years than they would otherwise need to, before they can afford to comfortably retire.”

The findings also come amid the launch of PensionBee's new online tool, 'Do I have a pension?', which aims to help identify the likelihood of missing pension pots, as well as providing methods to track them down and tips on how to combine them.

Share Story: