Two-thirds of Australians lack confidence about their finances in retirement, driven by higher living costs and uncertain times, according to a survey.
The Qantas Super CSBA Retirement Confidence Index (RCI) revealed overall 64 per cent of Australians indicated they were concerned about their financial well-being in retirement.
The majority (81 per cent) are concerned about not having enough money to get by, while 53 per cent worried they did not have enough money to maintain their lifestyle, and 51 per cent worried they would outlive their retirement savings.
Furthermore, one-quarter of respondents said they are not taking proactive measures to achieve financial independence in retirement.
Qantas Super chief executive Michael Clancy said: “Australia has one of the best retirement savings systems in the world and yet Australian adults do not feel confident that they will be able to afford a comfortable retirement.
“As a nation we can and should do more to improve the financial capability of Australians and encourage people to get involved in planning their retirement.”
Younger Australians aged 18-39 (69 per cent) are more concerned about their financial circumstances than those over 60, while women (68 per cent) are more concerned than men (61 per cent).
The survey of 1000 people in July also found those aged 40-59 remain the least confident age group, with confidence levels peaking for those over 60.
The retirement confidence of retirees recorded the largest fall in confidence across all groups, driven by the proportion of retirees responding that they had very high confidence falling considerably from 28 per cent in the March quarter to just 14 per cent in the July quarter.
“Unfortunately, wages growth, and for the over 60s income growth from their retirement savings, haven’t kept up,” Clancy said.
“There is no quick-fix solution, but a focus on understanding your financial position, and taking steps to improve your situation, will go some way to reducing the stress of the unknown.”
