Retired men in the UK have 70 per cent more to live on than women, new statistics reveal.
When both private and public pensions are added, women in Britain are living on just £26 per day of pension income, while retired men are living on £44 per day.
The figures are revealed by campaign group Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) who have looked at latest February 2022 figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and private pension wealth stats from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
According to the ONS, men aged between 65 and 74 have £182,700 in private pension savings, while women of the same age have just £25,000 saved up.
£77 per month pension
Using insurance giant Aviva’s annuity calculator, £25,000 delivers a pension of £77.50 per month or £2.50 per day for women.
Using the same calculator, the £182,700 that men have saved up gives them a pension of £612.19 per month, equivalent to £20.20 per day.
Meanwhile men get £170.50 a week of State Pension while women get £164.74 per week on average according to the DWP.
Not given sufficient time to make further savings
The difference in private pension is most acute because many women, already disadvantaged by balancing work with caring responsibilities, were not given sufficient time to make further savings when the pension age for women rose from 60 to 66, according to WASPI.
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) has been looking into whether changes to the State Pension age were amply communicated when announced in 1995.
Ombudsman report
Last July the Ombudsman said it found ‘failings’ in the way the DWP communicated changes to the women’s State Pension age.
WASPI are now campaigning for a one-off compensation payment from the Government for the failure to communicate the changes, which has left many women unprepared for retirement.
Madden: New figures show why women were so devastated by the DWP’s maladministration
WASPI chair and finance director Angela Madden said,
“These new figures show why women were so devastated by the DWP’s maladministration. The lion’s share of that paltry £26 per day comes from State Pension.
“If women had known they were going to retire up to six years later than they thought, they would have been able to plan better.”
Simmons: 11,000 Island women victims of DWP’s maladministration
Local Solent WASPI Coordinator, Shelagh Simmons, added,
“On 8th March we celebrated International Women’s Day. These shocking statistics show how far we still have to go to achieve pension equality between men and women.
“WASPI women weren’t able to save for their pensions in the same way as men.
“The around 11,000 Island women who are victims of the DWP’s maladministration need fair and fast compensation for the injustice they have suffered.”
For more information visit the Website.
News shared by Shelagh on behalf of Solent WASPI. Ed
Image: Nick Fewings under CC BY 2.0
