Gender Pension Gap
Closing the gap: What to consider going forward...
Understanding the Gender Pension Gap
You may be focused on making your finances work in the here and now. But taking a career break or even reducing your hours often means taking a break from paying into your pension, and that could impact on your income in the future.
Taking a career break? How to keep your pension working even if you're not.
Steps to help think about the gap:
- Understand the reasons behind the gap – Whether parental leave, care leave or a reduction in working hours, its important to recognise the impacts this may have on your future retirement.
- Review the gap – If you're planning or have taken a career break – review how much you would need to have a minimum and comfortable level of retirement. The PLSA retirement living standards can help picture the type of lifestyles that are possible in retirement.
- Financial advice could help – If you want more help thinking about money matters and pensions, a good place to begin is MoneyHelper, the government-backed free guidance service. This service won’t tell you what you should do, but they’ll provide you with information to help you understand your options. For tailored advice, you should speak to your financial adviser. If you don’t have one, you can find an up-to-date list of regulated advisers at MoneyHelper. You may have to pay for the advice you get but don't worry, there are usually a few ways you can pay the fee, including taking it out of your pension policy. To see what Aviva Financial Advice could do visit https://www.aviva.co.uk/retirement/aviva-financial-advice/
Articles and videos
Tracing lost pensions
It’s easy to lose track of old pensions. Start by contacting your previous employer or contact the Pensions Tracing Service.
Pension basics explained
Key things you need to know about pensions as you make your retirement plans.
How long is retirement?
How can you picture your retirement if you don't know how long it will last?
The Gender Pension Gap explained
Helpful insights and steps to take to help close the gap.
Transcript
Taking a break from work may mean taking a break from paying into your pension.
A gap could grow between how you see your future, and the funds you have available in your pension pot. It can affect everyone, but for women it could be contributing towards the gender pension gap.
How do you know if you're in the gap?
You could start with your online account.
Our retirement planner tool can help you see where you are now and how much you might need to live the lifestyle you’d like in retirement.
Just remember that the value of your pension can go down as well as up and you could end up with less than has been paid in.
The good news is there are things you could do to help close any gap.
If you can afford to, you might want to consider contributing a little more whether it’s to a personal or a workplace pension.
Also, check your National Insurance record on gov.uk to see if you’ll get the full State Pension amount when you retire.
Whatever your situation is, your pension is a valuable asset, so make sure you take an active interest.
We’re keen to help you close the gap - log on to your online account to use the retirement planner and stay on track for the future you want.
It takes a partnership.
It takes Aviva.
Aviva Life & Pensions UK Limited. Registered in England No. 3253947. Aviva, Wellington Row, York, YO90 1WR. Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Firm Reference Number 185896. Member of the Association of British Insurers.
Aviva Pension Trustees UK Limited. Registered in England No. 2407799. Aviva, Wellington Row, York, YO90 1WR. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Firm Reference Number 465132.
Have an Aviva Pension?
If you have an Aviva pension, manage your pension online
Log in to your MyAviva account to see your pension details and manage any changes. If you haven’t registered for an account yet, you’ll need to have your pension policy number.
MyWorkplace
If you have a workplace pension with an account starting with GS, or a membership number starting with F, register or log into MyWorkplace.
MoneyHelper
If you want more help thinking about pensions and retirement, a good place to begin is MoneyHelper, the government-backed free guidance service. The MoneyHelper service won’t tell you what you should do, but they’ll provide you with information to help you understand your options.
For more advice, you should speak to a financial adviser. Bear in mind they may charge a fee for this advice, but it will be personalised to your individual needs. If you don’t have an adviser, you can find an up-to-date list of regulated advisers at MoneyHelper.
