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Extra.ie
2 hours ago
- Business
- Extra.ie
How pension pots are being hit by cost of living
The cost of living is taking a major toll on people saving into their pension, a survey has found. Some 60% of day-to-day living costs such as grocery and childcare bills are among the key reasons people are not saving enough for their retirement, the survey of more than 130 advisers showed. A lack of knowledge or awareness of pensions is the prime reason Irish people are falling behind on their retirement savings, with 61% of financial advisers citing this as a key factor. Pic: Shutterstock Ireland's high cost of living comes a close second, with 60% of experts saying these costs are to blame. The other reasons people are not saving enough into their pensions are due to unaffordable housing (30%); a lack of interest in pension savings (28%) and poor budgeting & money management skills (22%). Glenn Gaughran, of pension trustees Independent Trustee Company, said: 'Ireland is the second most expensive country in the EU, with prices for basic goods and services a staggering 42% above the EU average, according to a recent Eurostat report. Pic: Shutterstock 'Ireland experienced record inflation in 2022 and 2023, with inflation surpassing 9% on a number of occasions. 'While inflation today is a fraction of what it was back then, worryingly, it has started to creep up again. 'Let's not forget too that aboveaverage inflation has been recorded for many basic grocery items with butter prices up over 16% over the last year, milk up between 12% and 14% and beef up 13%,' the report says. Pic: Shutterstock 'So inflationary pressures are still very much a reality in Ireland and this has far-reaching consequences for Irish people, not just for affording the immediate day-to-day but also for saving and planning for retirement years. 'The message of why it's so important to save adequately into your pension needs to be communicated in a way which hits home to Irish people.'
RTÉ News
7 hours ago
- Business
- RTÉ News
Price pinch taking toll on pension savings
The high cost of living in Ireland is taking a major toll on pension savings, according to 60% of financial advisors surveyed. The survey of over 130 advisors was undertaken by pension trustees, Independent Trustee Company. It examined why financial advisors believe people are not saving adequately for their pension. While the survey shows that lack of knowledge or awareness of pensions is the top reason Irish people are falling behind on their retirement savings, with 61% of advisors citing this as a key factor, Ireland's high living costs come a close second, with 60% of financial experts saying these costs are to blame. The Top 5 reasons people are not saving enough into their pensions are: Lack of knowledge/awareness of pensions High day-to-day living costs Unaffordable housing Lack of interest in pension savings Poor budgeting & money management skills Glenn Gaughran, head of business development with the ITC said: "Ireland is the second most expensive country in the EU, with prices for basic goods and services a staggering 42% above the EU average, according to a recent Eurostat report. "Inflationary pressures are still very much a reality in Ireland and this has far-reaching consequences for Irish people, not just for affording the immediate day-to-day – but also for saving and planning for future retirement years." He said, unless more is done by the Government to tackle Ireland's high living costs so that people can save adequately for their retirement, "many simply won't have a comfortable or even basic standard of living when they retire".
Irish Independent
26-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Men being more active in their pensions explains the retirement gap, experts say
Men also save more into their pensions than women, according to a majority of financial advisers surveyed nationwide by pension trustees, Independent Trustee Company. The most common reason cited for why women lag so far behind on pension savings is that women often take extended periods of time out from the workforce to start and raise their families. They also often earn less than men. A separate recent study found that Irish women have 31pc less than men in their pension pots when they retire. The Independent Trustee Company (ITC) survey of 130 financial advisers found that the main reason pension experts feel that women lag behind men in building up pension pots is because they often leave the workforce to raise families. Another factor is men take a more active role in financial planning. And they are more likely to think long-term when it comes to financial planning, the survey respondents said. One in seven of the pensions experts said men are more interested in pensions than women. However, in what is better news for women, the finance experts said it was their experience that the pension gender gap is narrowing. This is when compared with the same survey run by ITC last year. Twice as many advisers now believe that men are saving the same amount into their pensions as women. And there has been a slight fall in the number of financial experts who believe that men are saving more than women into their pension. Glenn Gaughran, head of business development with ITC, said: 'While the over-riding message from this research is that women still lag significantly behind men when it comes to their pension savings, encouragingly the results suggest that some progress is being made and that the gender pension gap is narrowing.' He said that given that women in Ireland typically live longer than men, and that there has been a substantial increase in recent years in the number of female pensioners, the gender pension gap is hugely concerning and it is important that this gap is bridged. Mr Gaughran said women have long faced challenges in building their pension savings.
Irish Independent
22-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Delays will continue to hinder rollout of auto-enrolment pension scheme, experts caution
The results of a survey of pension advisers comes after Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers said the long-awaited introduction of the auto-enrolment pension scheme would be postponed again. The new mandatory pension was due to be put in place by September, but its rollout is not likely until at least next January. A survey of pension advisers, undertaken by leading pension trustees Independent Trustee Company (ITC), found that three in 10 expected the rollout to be delayed again. They expect it to be postponed by at least another two years. Many of them are also calling on the Government to remove the limits on the amounts that can be saved into pensions through auto-enrolment. This would give people a better chance of saving up an adequate pension through the scheme. The survey of 130 pension advisers also found that 8pc expect it to be later than 2028 or 'never' by the time auto-enrolment is rolled out. Almost two-thirds expect the rollout of the mandatory pension to be delayed into next year. Under the scheme, workers would automatically be enrolled in a pension scheme, with contributions then made into the scheme by employers, the State and the employees. There are limits on the amounts that can be saved into it. Employees and employers are not permitted to save more than 1.5pc of an employee's annual salary into the scheme in the first three years . This has prompted concerns around the adequacy of the retirement income workers would have if relying on auto-enrolment alone. Asked whether they would support a removal of caps on the amount that employees and employers can contribute, more than four in 10 pension experts said the contribution limits should be removed. Most of them said the limits should be the same as they are on private pensions. Glenn Gaughran, head of business development with the Independent Trustee Company, said: 'It is imperative that private pension coverage in Ireland is improved – otherwise, a significant portion of the population could struggle financially when they reach retirement.' He said one-third of workers currently had no pension coverage outside the state pension. Mr Gaughran said that if the Government was serious about increasing private pension coverage, it could not afford any more delays with auto-enrolment. The scheme, which will be named My Future Fund, will cover around 800,000 people who do not have a private pension, or one as part of their job, but its introduction has been repeatedly delayed. Auto-enrolment has been 20 years in the making and was due to be put in place by September of this year. It is being deferred until at least next January as part of government plans to support businesses amid the economic uncertainty caused by US tariffs. The plan is aimed at workers between the ages of 23 and 60 earning more than €20,000 who are not currently part of a pension plan.
