Pre-retirees face seven-year deferral, but 40% shun advice

Britons now expect to save for a period of 30 years before they retire, compared to the current generation of retirees who saved for only 23 years.

On average, pre-retirees expect to work until they are 63, compared to 59 for current retirees.

They are also starting their saving earlier, at 26 compared to 29. HSBC has cited possible reasons as ongoing changes to the state pension age as well as increased awareness of retirement issues.

However one in five (21%) pre-retirees still have not started saving for their retirement. Meanwhile, of the 79% who have started saving, 28% have either had to stop or have faced financial difficulties.

When asked where they were going to get advice about saving for retirement, 40% had never received any advice or information.

Yet of those who did seek financial advice, 45% said it gave them a better understanding of the financial implications of their choices and 42% said it gave them a more realistic view of the options available to them.