'Myth' of reckless retirement spending dispelled by research

One in 10 admit to overspending

Hannah Godfrey
clock • 1 min read

Just one in 10 pensioners admitted to overspending in retirement, and four out of five said they spent lump sums wisely since the launch of pension freedoms, according to research by Prudential.

According to Prudential, critics of the pension freedoms have suggested the policy change would lead to pensioners running out of money in retirement. The research, however, indicates otherwise. Just one in 10 who have stopped work since the introduction of the reforms admitted to overspending, and nearly four out of five (79%) said they have used lump sums they have withdrawn from their funds wisely. A quarter have used their pension to pay off all their debts, and just 6% said they initially withdrew more than the tax-free 25% cash lump sum from their funds. Contrary to what may ha...

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