46% disagree with female state pension changes

Retiresavvy.co.uk has found one in 10 (9%), still believe men and women should have different retirement ages.

The state pension age is set to reach 65 for women by November 2018 and 66 by 2020. However, many women have expressed concern that they haven’t had the appropriate notifications about the changes and that they will see an unfair increase for many years before they can draw their state pension.

DWP figures show letters were sent to women when they were 58 or in some cases 59 to tell them their pension age of 60 had been delayed. On average they were given just one year and five months notice before they reached their expected state pension age of 60. Some had less than one year's notice; none had more than two.

More than a fifth (21%) of those surveyed agree that appropriate steps should be in place to make it a gentler transition for the women who were given short notice.  

Clare Mahood, from retiresavvy.co.uk, said:

“Our research has found a real divide in the nation’s opinion on if they believe the rise in the State Pension Age for women is fair or not. But what is clear is that people do want to ensure women receive a fair, gentler transition into this change.

And it’s the transition period which Women Against Stat Pension Inequality are campaigning for, to ensure the government make fair transitional arrangements for all women  born on or after the 6th April 1951, who they believe have unfairly borne the burden of the increase to the State Pension Age.