The Prudential is warning people that the current state pension cannot be relied upon to provide a decent standard of living.
A spokesman from the Prudential said that everyone should be putting more money aside for retirement from a much earlier age. Without this financial provision there are going to be many people finding life very hard as they reach retirement, something that no-one wants to see.
According to Prudential figures well over a third of people actually lose sleep thinking about the financial pressures they will face in retirement. This situation can be resolved through forward planning and saving over a longer period of time. As long as the pension provision can be afforded by the individual and day to day living can still be enjoyed then early pension planning can transform the future.
A study of the retirement market by Saga Insurance has shown that equity release schemes are being used by many people to help boost finances in retirement, helping them do the things they want to do with their time.
Contrasting with a more conservative view a few years ago, around 88 percent of those surveyed by Saga Insurance, now feel equity release is a good idea. In the past the more common view was that the home should be left to children as part of the inheritance.
With nearly 80 percent of those aged 60 and over having paid off their mortgages there is certainly a substantial amount of money available that is tied up in property. The equity release option frees up this money to provide a more pleasant lifestyle.
The Prudential has advised with profits policyholders that there will not be a windfall payment to them of surplus funds after considering the option fully.
There was a consideration of the option, working out at around GBP1,000 per person which would have been in exchange for these customers giving up the right to any future pay outs from the assets the Prudential inherited from other companies. However it has been decided that the inherited funds will be better employed withn the organisation right now, especially in the current economic climate where financial institutions are looking to maintain as much financial fluidity as they can.
Customers of the Prudential will surely not feel too aggrieved by the decision since it looks like the sensible and considered option to most commentators. It is better to have a strong business than no business at all.
