One in six (15%) adults who are in a couple do not know who would receive their pension savings if they died, a survey has found.
This figure rises to nearly a fifth (18%) of people aged 79-plus, according to Aviva, which warned that some people may have been “married, divorced and married again”.
The proportion of people who do not know their beneficiaries also increases to a quarter (25%) of people who are living with their partner but do not have the legal standing of being married or in a civil partnership.
Three in 10 (30%) Gen-Z adults aged 16 to 24 also say they do not know who would benefit from any pension savings in the event of their death.
Nearly two-thirds (65%) of people said their partner or spouse is their named beneficiary, while a fifth (20%) have selected a family member. One in 25 (4%) are leaving pension wealth to a charity and 3% have named a friend as a beneficiary, according to the survey carried out by Censuswide in February among 2,000 people who are in a couple.
Aviva emphasised the importance of regularly checking and updating pension beneficiary information.
This simple step could help make sure that retirement savings are distributed according to someone’s wishes, avoiding potential legal complications and emotional distress for loved ones, it said.
Some people may find they can update their beneficiaries in their pension app.
Jo Phillips, managing director of Aviva’s direct wealth business, said: “It’s not surprising that people lose track of their pensions and therefore cannot remember who their pension beneficiary is.
“Some pension policies will date back decades and it’s likely that many people will have changed jobs; moved house and even been married, divorced and married again, in the intervening years.
“The money in your pension pot is one of your assets, just like your savings or your possessions, so we would encourage all our customers to review their pension nominees and make updates as needed. It’s easy to nominate a recipient. Most of the time, it can be done online without any fuss.”
