How safe is your pension - channel 5 last night

[Gerry557]

https://www.channel5.com/show/britain-s ... ion-crisis

Watched this last night but thought it was quite sensationalist in trying to get its point across. It picked out a few people to give them an insight to their expected lifestyle on current pension projections

It wasn't very factual. One couple bought their weekly shop around £80. Then they opened an envelope with the expected amount under £25. They then had to returned the uncosted items. They did a similar exercise for leisure in a restaurant. The envelope revealing a tenner, not even a decent bottle of wine one quoted.

The program didn't really share how they came to the figures. The couple had pension pot of 60k she sometimes saving £50 and him a couple of hundred.

The "scare" tatic worked and the couple vowed to change and save more.

I don't know how it might help others. If they included actual figures and explanation of expectations, the finance expert did say assuming 7% growth, you might be able to follow how they got to the end game with the envelopes.

Whilst the premis of the program was good I wonder how much good it would achieve. Would those with their heads in the sand alter or those struggling be able to find a better way?

One couple, in 60s no savings no pension thought they would be working till they dropped but as club entertainment was dropping off might find themselves out of work anyway.

Hopefully they will do more follow-up programmes and keep pushing the issues to help those that might be able to do something before it's too late.

So not a great watch but thought that the audience here might be on the subject list

[pje16]

I think it would trigger some (hopefully a lot )to think more about getting their pension sorted out
It's too late for the pair dreamers in the show who thought they could buy 2 houses in France, one to live in and one to rent out
A lot of people need a reality check so the program need to be "sensationalist"

[pje16]

https://www.channel5.com/show/britain-s-great-pension-crisis

That link shows that the original showing was last Dec
Part 2 is here
https://www.channel5.com/show/britain-s ... 7a955e7c5d
or on your Catchup TV service

[AF62]

The program didn't really share how they came to the figures. The couple had pension pot of 60k she sometimes saving £50 and him a couple of hundred.

I thought it a pathetic show given the interesting subject.

The show quoted at the beginning as needing £27k for a “comfortable” retirement, although I have seen numbers elsewhere that suggest higher numbers. It then quoted needing £500k if you were going to need that for 20 years - and it didn’t touch on whether this was including or excluding the state pension.

The show seemed to rig the numbers by getting them to say they wanted to retire at 60, as obviously if they retired at their state pension age then the current state pension for a couple of £19k is going to cover an awful lot of that £27k.

So needing to fund 7 or so years between retiring and getting the state pension would eat into their savings massively, but this wasn’t touched on, preferring the ridiculous envelope approach.

However if all they needed to do was to top up the state pension by £8k to get to the “comfortable” figure, then it wasn’t going to take much to add to the £60k they already have to get there (assuming that they were happy to consume all their savings over their period of retirement and not do something silly like only drawing 4% to maintain the value to pass on).

A good idea for a show spoiled by a silly sensationalist approach with no hard facts.

[pje16]

It need to be pitched an the average family
anyone in their 50s who doesn't have a pension well into 6 figures will be in for a nasty surprise

[AF62]

anyone in their 50s who doesn't have a pension well into 6 figures will be in for a nasty surprise

Anyone?

Median household income in the UK after tax is £31k (https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulation ... ending2021) and that has to cover housing costs and raising children.

A couple would be receiving £19k in state pensions after tax and will most likely have no housing costs (either being mortgage free or entitled to housing benefit) and no child costs.

Would that reduction in income be much of a nasty surprise?

So sure if someone has been earning significantly above the median household income and hasn’t made provision to maintain that level of disposable income, but for the average person the only surprise will be the age at which they can retire.

[pje16]

OK anyone is an exaggeration
a larger number than I imagined of the population have no savings and or pension

[Gerry557]

Thanks @pje16 for the second link. I only came across the channel 5 program by accident so might try and watch the missing bits.

It might give it more context but you would think necessary info would have been included.

"Pathetic" yes could agree with that. Would have liked to see what solutions were offered and the "savings" that they were prepared to make to find this extra.

Maybe this should be done in schools and some sort of compulsory training for 18 year old. The current generation might be helped by the having to sign out of the pension system so it becomes the norm from the off. Even then some won't be in a system.

[scrumpyjack]

OK anyone is an exaggeration
a larger number than I imagined of the population have no savings and or pension

Surely they have the state pension?

[pje16]

Maybe this should be done in schools and some sort of compulsory training for 18 year old.

What a good idea
My career background is finance and IT (if it wasn't I might be in the poop re my pension)
Certainly never had anything useful like that during my educational years - learnt all sort of other nonsense that I have never used since that day I left

[pje16]

OK anyone is an exaggeration
a larger number than I imagined of the population have no savings and or pension

Surely they have the state pension?

See how far you get with £185 per week
at the moment that won't even buy you 2 tanks of petrol

[scrumpyjack]

OK anyone is an exaggeration
a larger number than I imagined of the population have no savings and or pension

Surely they have the state pension?

See how far you get with £185 per week
at the moment that won't even buy you 2 tanks of petrol

So in other words the answer to my question is Yes, they do have a pension

(don't need to fill a car up 'cos they got a free bus pass)

[pje16]

That was an example of how little it buys you

You can't eat or heat the house with a bus pass

[AF62]

You can't eat or heat the house with a bus pass

But they can with the £19,240 a year they will be receiving in state pensions!

Sure it isn't going to be buying them first class flights to a month long luxury cruise in the Caribbean, but they are not going to starve or freeze with that income.

[pje16]

You can't eat or heat the house with a bus pass

But they can with the £19,240 a year they will be receiving in state pensions!

Sure it isn't going to be buying them first class flights to a month long luxury cruise in the Caribbean, but they are not going to starve or freeze with that income.

sounds more when your example is for 2 people
wait til energy prices go up another 40 odd% in 4 months time

[AF62]

You can't eat or heat the house with a bus pass

But they can with the £19,240 a year they will be receiving in state pensions!

Sure it isn't going to be buying them first class flights to a month long luxury cruise in the Caribbean, but they are not going to starve or freeze with that income.

sounds more when your example is for 2 people
wait til energy prices go up another 40 odd% in 4 months time

The prediction for the average household energy bill under the new cap in October is around £2,900.

But of course they will have received the £400 credit, plus as as pensioners the £300, and likely the £150 council tax refund as well, and that £850 will take a good chunk of the sting out of that fuel price increase.

And in addition next April with the CPI increase likely to be 11% or higher they will probably be getting £21,164 (or more) a year, and that won’t be decreasing when hopefully the fuel bills come down.

[AJC5001]

Surely they have the state pension?

See how far you get with £185 per week
at the moment that won't even buy you 2 tanks of petrol

So 2 tanks of petrol - I would expect to get 500 miles on a tank of petrol.
Why would someone on State pension need to travel 52,000 miles a year?

Adrian

[pje16]

Surely they have the state pension?

See how far you get with £185 per week
at the moment that won't even buy you 2 tanks of petrol

So 2 tanks of petrol - I would expect to get 500 miles on a tank of petrol.
Why would someone on State pension need to travel 52,000 miles a year?

Adrian

Jeez... It wasn't mean to be taken literally
just an example of how little it buys you
I had quoted how many Mar bars it would buy you have said no-one would eat that many

[baldchap]

From the title I presumed that this thread would be about the biggest threat to our Pensions.
The Government.

[pje16]

Agreed
Can you live off the State Pension?
would have been better, boring but just HOW do you make it exciting