Pensioners need an extra £60 a week to get by because the state pension doesn’t cover their basic needs, report finds
- Researchers said pensioners need £230 a week to cover the basic cost of living
- The full state pension is at a rate of £168.60 a week – or £8,767.20 a year
- Pensioners in the South East of England require at least £274.40 a week
- Experts advise people to make arrangements for a pension long before retiring
Pensioners need nearly £230 a week to cover the basic costs of living, an analysis found yesterday. This is around £60 more than the state pension offers.
The basic price of retirement is over a third higher than the full state pension of £168.60 a week – or £8,767.20 a year.
And the cost of a decent retirement is even higher in the most expensive parts of the country, according to the breakdown carried out by the Key retirement finance company. It said that in the South East a pensioner needs £274.40 a week, more than £100 above the highest payment allowed by the state pension.
Pensioners need nearly £230 a week to cover the basic costs of living, an analysis found yesterday. This is around £60 more than the state pension offers
The basic price of retirement is over a third higher than the full state pension of £168.60 a week – or £8,767.20 a year
The figures illustrate the pressure to find sources of money beyond the state pension or pension credit. The estimates say a retired person needs on average £11,830 a year to live decently – or £227.50 a week. The report, based on official spending assessments, says one fifth of the money goes on utility bills and another on food.
Will Hale, of Key, said: ‘With retirees needing 35 per cent more than the full state pension provides, people need to think carefully about how they will bridge this gap… For most people, maintaining a decent standard of living in retirement means maximising all sources of income.’