Retirement savers could boost their pension pots by up to £13,620 with just a “few clicks”.
Millions of Britons are missing out on substantial retirement savings because they have lost track of pension pots from previous jobs.
The crisis has reached an “astounding” scale, with the value of lost pensions now hitting £31.1bn nationwide.
Simple online tools can help savers track down these missing funds, potentially unlocking thousands of pounds for their retirement years.
Between 2018 and 2024, the number of lost pots in Britain doubled from 1.6m to 3.3m, according to the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI).The combined value of the assets in these pots surged from £19.4bn to £31.1bn
The average lost pension pot is worth £9,470, with this figure rising to £13,620 significantly for those aged 55 to 75.
Savers can easily track down their lost pensions through the Government’s Pension Tracing Service
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Mike Ambery, retirement savings director at Standard Life, warns the problem is set to worsen: “That £31bn figure is astounding. Do I think it will increase? Yes, it will.”
Savers can easily track down their lost pensions through the Government’s Pension Tracing Service or by visiting pensionattention.co.uk.
Chris Blackwood, spokesperson for the Pension Attention campaign said: “If you can do one thing today, visit pensionattention.co.uk and use the pension tracing tools to find any lost pension pots.
“It only takes a few clicks, and you could substantially add to your pot.”
A combination of people switching jobs and automatic enrolment into workplace pensions is behind the increasing number of pots going adrift, researchers said.
Experts advise checking old paperwork, retracing career steps and looking for gaps in pension history. Updating contact details with pension providers is also crucial to prevent pots from going astray.
Ambery warns that even when lost pots are reclaimed, savers may have missed out on significant returns due to poor investment strategies.
He said: “It would be reasonable to think [the lost returns] would be thousands, if not tens of thousands of pounds for an average earner.
The crisis compounds an existing problem of pension under saving, with just one in seven people saving enough for retirement. The impact is particularly severe for those aged 55 to 75, who have average lost pots worth £13,620.
For someone in their 60s earning the average salary of £33,852, this missing sum equals five years of pension contributions at eight per cent.
Standard Life research reveals that one in four people over 55 have never checked any of their pensions.
The Government plans to introduce a pension dashboard system next year to help savers better track their pensions. However,
Ambery cautions that while the dashboard will improve visibility, it won’t automatically encourage engagement or help consolidate small pots.
One potential solution could be adopting Australia’s “pot follows member” system, where pensions automatically move with people between jobs.
A Government spokesman said: “Our Pension Schemes Bill will help over 15m, including by bringing savers’ pension pots together in one place could boost pension pots by £11,000.”
Experts continue to urge savers to take immediate action using existing tracing tools.
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