The figures come from the Pensions Policy Institute’s (PPI) 2026 Lost Pensions Survey, supported by the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS). The research highlights how pension savings can become disconnected from their owners, often following changes in employment or address, leaving substantial sums unclaimed.
Lost Pensions Affect Younger Workers Most, but Older Savers Face Larger Sums
According to the PPI, 81.88% of lost pension pots belong to people under 55. This represents approximately 2.5 million pots containing £12.9 billion, making younger savers responsible for the largest share of untraced retirement funds.
The institute links this pattern to employment changes, automatic enrolment and greater job mobility among younger workers. Restrictions preventing most people from accessing private pensions before 55, with the minimum age rising to 57 in 2028, also contribute to the age distribution.
For older savers, the amounts involved are considerably higher. More than half a million lost pension pots, collectively worth over £5 billion, belong to people aged 55 to 74. Their average value of £10,710 represents a substantial amount of retirement savings that owners may not realise they hold.
The research also identifies differences between men and women. Women’s lost pension pots average £5,370, compared with £6,830 for men, a difference exceeding 20%. Among people over 75, approximately 8,000 pension pots remain lost. Although these account for just 0.26% of all missing pots, they represent 13% of pensions associated with that age group.
The PPI’s latest survey also examines defined benefit pensions for the first time. Its findings suggest that lost entitlements exist across different pension arrangements, although further evidence is needed to establish their overall scale and value.
How Pension Savings Become Lost and What Owners Can Do
Pension pots are generally classified as lost when providers can no longer contact their owners, commonly because former employees have moved without updating their details.
According to AJ Bell’s director of public policy, Tom Selby, automatic enrolment has helped millions of workers build retirement savings, but changing jobs frequently leaves individuals with multiple pension accounts they no longer monitor.
Government-backed pension dashboards are intended to address this problem by allowing people to view their retirement savings in one place. The MoneyHelper Pensions Dashboard is expected to launch during the 2027/28 financial year, although no confirmed public launch date has been announced.
In the meantime, savers can use the Government’s Pension Tracing Service to identify contact details for former pension schemes.
According to This is Money’s pensions columnist Steve Webb, tracing old pensions can begin with checking previous correspondence for policy numbers and contacting former employers. Companies House records and HMRC employment histories may also help identify organisations responsible for older schemes.
Savers can investigate whether previous pension providers have merged with other businesses or transferred their responsibilities elsewhere. Finding a forgotten pension does not necessarily mean it should be consolidated. Combining retirement funds can simplify administration, but may also result in the loss of valuable existing benefits.
The findings precede National Pensions Tracing Day on 25 October, drawing attention to retirement savings that remain disconnected from their owners.
