A lack of financial planning before retirement is forcing many employees to work beyond pensionable age, Zurich has warned.

Research from the group has indicated that 64 per cent of people currently anticipate that they will continue to work after reaching retirement, while nearly a third (31 per cent) are being forced back into a job because their savings cannot support them adequately. Independent think tank the Future Laboratory has labelled such a scenario ‘returnment’ and has insisted that it signifies the changing retirement situation in the UK.

Commenting on the findings of the group, ex-member of parliament Michael Portillo warned that soaring living costs, rising inflation, fears of a looming recession and concerns about the credit crunch have left many people vulnerable to an unstable future beyond their working life. He added that an awareness of issues such as these is driving many older workers to continue staying on.

For those who are struggling to put money away under the weight of inflated strains on monthly expenditure, taking out a debt consolidation loan may prove an effective way to manage outgoings. In opting for this type of payment arrangement, people may find they are able to put a little spare cash aside each month in order to make provisions for the future.

Research from Zurich suggested that it is not just financial concerns that are spurring people on to re-entering the workforce, with more than a third (34 per cent) of respondents saying that doing so would help them to remain active into their later years. A quarter of people (26 per cent) are considering keeping their job in order to stave off boredom. Meanwhile, more than one in five (22 per cent) still feel they will have a valuable contribution to make beyond retirement age and would consider staying on to further this.

However, despite a willingness to carry on in their employment, a failure to seek financial advice may lead many people to encounter problems in the future. According to Zurich, 74 per cent of workers have never sought guidance on how to manage money for the future, with 94 per cent of people aged between 25 and 34 saying they had not done so. Meanwhile, 69 per cent stated that they had never sough advice.

Zurich warned that failing to do so could leave employees with a nasty shock as it seems many are not accurately calculating how much their retirement will cost. Indeed, with 16 per cent expecting to travel extensively and take a holiday at least once every three months, it seems many Britons will need to start nurturing some rather substantial nest eggs in the near future.

Commenting on the figures, Tony Solomon, business development director at Zurich UK Life, said: “Whilst it is encouraging to see that people intend to lead such an active retirement, there is real need to alert people to the importance of planning for their retirement from an early age.”

According a study published by Axa, many UK residents are concerned that public pensions provision will diminish in the next ten years, making the retirement process more difficult than it already is.

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