24 May 2017
More than a third of people planning to retire this year are still providing financial assistance to family members, according to research from insurance company Prudential.
Some 34% of retirees expecting to retire in 2017 are paying an average of £260 a month to help out family members, adding to the squeeze on their own retirement incomes.
Of this figure, the study found that the most likely financial dependents are the individual’s own children (45%), while some 24% are supplementing the incomes of their grandchildren and partners.
Despite many people providing financial support to their loved ones, the research revealed that around one in three (34%) of this year’s class of retirees still expect to leave an inheritance – up from 28% in 2016.
The average inheritance is expected to be in the region of £173,000.
Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson for Prudential said: ‘With life expectancy increasing rapidly it is not unreasonable to expect the members of the Class of 2017 to be looking forward to a retirement that will last 20 years.
‘However, for those providing financial support to their dependants it is likely to cost them an average of £62,000 over the course of their retirement - accounting for a significant proportion of their pension pot and impacting the income they can expect to live on,’ she said.
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