A survey from workplace pension provider, Smart Pension, has found one in three British employees now has a pension set up through auto enrolment.

A survey from workplace pension provider, Smart Pension, found that one in three British employees now have a pension set up through auto-enrolment.

The independent poll, conducted by YouGov on behalf of Smart Pension, found 36% of employees questioned said their pensions were created under auto-enrolment.

It also found 28% of employees said they had a non-auto enrolled pension, 17% had a standard personal pension (SPP), and 8% had a self-invested personal pension (SIPP) and 7% had a stakeholder pension.

6% didn't know what sort of pension they had, and 17% didn't have a pension at all.

Will Wynne, co-founder and managing director of Smart Pension, said: "Auto enrolment has already overtaken every other form of pension, including personal pensions, in a very short space of time."

"We will be keeping a close eye on this with a regular biannual independent State of the Nation poll."

According to the Pensions Regulator more than six million workers have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension since 2012.

Regional variation

A second YouGov poll of eleven cities showed that Bristol has the highest percentage of workers with an auto enrolled workplace pension – at 52%- compared with London, where only 26% have auto enrolled.

One in five (19%) of the British workforce said they either had or would be opting out of their workplace scheme, exceeding the government's forecast of 15% opt out rate overall.

The survey also revealed almost six out of ten (56%) believe they are not saving enough, despite growing uncertainty over the future of the state pension and falling savings rates.

"It seems everyone understands the need to save for their retirement, yet many are simply brushing the issue of pensions under the carpet," said Wynne.

"In a period when savings are being hammered by falling interest rates, workplace pensions are an effective way of funding retirement."

First published 29.09.2016

Lindsay.sharman@wilmingtonplc.com