The NAPF Workplace Pension Survey tracks the opinions and attitudes of people in employment on pensions, and their expectations in retirement.

Latest Edition: April 2013

This year’s report looks at access to and membership in a workplace pension scheme. Respondents aged 35 and older were most likely (58%) to be members of a pension scheme at their workplace, while young people aged 18-24 and those earning £7,000 or less per year were least likely (18%) to be in this position. 

Figure 1. Access to workplace pension schemes 

 
This is the first NAPF workplace pension survey to capture those who have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension scheme under the new reforms. 40% of respondents stated that they had been auto-enrolled into a workplace pension scheme, with only 15% of those who were auto-enrolled choosing to opt-out.

Figure 2. Have you been auto-enrolled into a workplace pension scheme

 
The decisions likely to be made by those who are eligible but have yet to be auto-enrolled into a workplace pension scheme are captured by the NAPF’s opt-out tracker. This tool is used to show the proportion of people who are likely to opt out once they have been auto-enrolled into a pension. The chart below has been adjusted for those who are currently undecided about what they will do once they are auto-enrolled in to a scheme at their workplace.

Figure 3. How likely is it that you will stay auto-enrolled? - Overall response

 
The spring survey also shows that more people are confident in pensions compared to other ways of saving for retirement:

Figure 4: Confidence in pensions

 
This spring the NAPF also measured respondents’ opinions on responsibility, awareness and risk in pensions. Two in 5 respondents said that they had talked about their pension more in the past year than in previous years. One in 3 respondents (32%) said that they do not know whether their pension is good or not, whilst less than half of respondents (39%) said they were more aware of their workplace pension arrangements now than in the past.

Figure 5: Responsibility and awareness of pensions

 
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

• Half of respondents were members of a workplace pension scheme.
• 70% of public sector workers were members of a scheme compared to 43% of private sector workers.
• 42% work for an employer who does not have a workplace pension scheme in place.
• 40% have been auto-enrolled into a pension scheme and only 15% of these have opted out. 9 in 10 of 25 – 34 year olds stayed in their scheme.
• 62% of those who have been auto-enrolled agree that they expect their income in retirement to come from their workplace pension.
• 64% of respondents who have not been auto-enrolled and have decided what they are likely to do when they are auto-enrolled say they would choose to stay in the scheme.
• The confidence index has increased to -8 showing that more people are confident in pensions versus other ways of saving compared to a year ago.
• 42% of respondents wish they had taken more interest in saving for their retirement earlier in their working life. 25-34 year olds are most likely to wish they had saved earlier.
• 39% are more aware of their workplace pension arrangements now than they were in the past. Almost half of 25-34 year olds were in this position.
• 50% of respondents would choose to save in a less risky investment if they were guaranteed a minimum income in retirement.
• 43% of respondents worry that their savings and pensions will not be enough to live on in retirement.