Mike Morrison, head of pensions, AXA Wealth, said: “Barely a week goes by without a report on increasing longevity – an issue that will affect us all in all walks of life. Today’s ONS figures on life expectancy should be the rude awakening that government, consumers and the financial services industry need to focus on how we are going to fund the growing period of time we will spend in retirement. Initiatives such as removing the need to take an annuity and new drawdown options, along with next year’s auto-enrolment, are a good starting point, but only that.
“While we are encouraging people to work longer, we are also suffering from record youth unemployment. In a similar vein we are increasing the state pension age but it is still unclear how quickly it will rise and for whom. Surely it is time to take the politics out of longevity and to consider the holistic effects of an ageing society on everything we do? All of this needs to be underpinned by better financial education for consumers alongside the provision of professional advice. This industry has spent too long talking in jargon that has little meaning for many. Tackling a problem of this scale needs plain English for the message to be understood.
“Steps have been taken to address these problems, but we still need a clear, coherent and consistent narrative from government to help consumers change the way they think about long term saving.
“For example, clear communication is at the heart of the AXA Wealth brand, with a range of resources including practical guidelines, tools and templates in place to ensure plain English is used across customer communication.”
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