Freelancers could be part of mass exodus of Brits having to retire abroad as UK deemed too expensive
A new survey reveals why more people in the UK may have to retire abroad to make ends meet
As tensions in France flare over the raising of the retirement age from 62 to 64, UK sentiment about retirement ages doesn’t seem to differ much from the French, according to a survey.
- 70% of respondents believe it’s harder to retire comfortably in the UK today than ever before.
- 78% of respondents also believe the retirement age in the UK should be lowered, whilst 42% of Brits would prefer to leave the UK and live abroad for their retirement.
Some 68.71% of respondents believe that the UK retirement age (which currently stands at 66) should be lowered. This sentiment also comes alongside 71.16% of respondents believing that it is harder to retire in the UK now than ever before thanks to the cost of living.
Freelancers who may not have been contributing to a pension over the years may find the UK too expensive to spend their retirement years. This could see more freelancers consider becoming digital nomads abroad with a view to gaining permanent residency down the line.
In fact, 62.60% of respondents believe that their pension is simply not enough to retire comfortably, citing that they believe they will need additional investments alongside their pension. This may be due to the fact that over half of respondents (55.82%) agree that they are unable to make as many pension contributions as they would like to.
The survey, conducted by the investment comparison site Investing Reviews, asked over 2,000 users their opinions and attitudes towards retirement, pensions and investments. What is particularly interesting is that over a third (34.93%) of respondents revealed that they do not know exactly how much money is in their pension, whilst again, over a third of respondents believe they will not be able to retire comfortably in the UK.
This sentiment around the difficulty of retiring comfortably in the UK and the frustration at not being able to contribute as much to their pensions as they’d like is echoed in respondents’ answers to the question:
“If I was able to, I would choose to retire outside of the UK” 42.66% of respondents agreed – raising questions over the increasing rate of inflation and cost-of-living that is perhaps not something that those looking to retire, are able to keep up with if they remain in the UK.
Commenting on the findings, CEO of Investing Reviews, Simon Jones said: “There are endless debates to be had regarding the UK retirement age and the state of pensions, especially considering the recent rise in retirement age in France and the backlash that received.
“These responses offer a fascinating insight into the attitudes that the British public holds towards pensions and retirement ages, particularly the sentiment that it is now harder to retire comfortably than ever before. It will be interesting to see if factors such as the backlash in France to the rise in the retirement age and the increasing difficulty of the cost-of-living crisis have any effect on these sentiments in the future.”
According to My Pension Expert research from earlier this year, 44% of over-55s currently in work feel the cost-of-living crisis has “rendered retirement impossible – a devastating figure, following their decades of hard work and diligent saving.”
To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statement? If I was able to, I would choose to retire outside of the UK
| Agree (net) | 42.62% |
| Strongly agree | 17.45% |
| Somewhat agree | 25.17% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 22.22% |
| Somewhat disagree | 12.33% |
| Strongly disagree | 17.24% |
| Disagree (net) | 29.57% |
| Unsure | 5.59% |
To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statement? It is harder to retire comfortably now than ever before
| Agree (net) | 71.16% |
| Strongly agree | 37.18% |
| Somewhat agree | 33.98% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 17.27% |
| Somewhat disagree | 5.29% |
| Strongly disagree | 1.70% |
| Disagree (net) | 6.99% |
| Unsure | 4.59% |
Have you considered how you will afford a retirement? If you could afford to live in the UK on a pension alone? Leave your thoughts in our comments section.
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I think – retire my needed a long term planning position.
I was lucky my relative was a fun advisor and I set up and contributed to pension plans over 25years ..
My pot is over the old £1.1m threshold and I have no mortgage or debts..
I’m lucky – I know at 54
I think if I had no family in the uk – abroad would be good solution and some of my friends in Dubai are looking to retire to Spain/Portugal ..
We have been systematically hit by tax burdens and reduced allowances by suscessive governments .. we haven’t been supported . I see my self as very lucky working in the erp space ..
Good luck to all