The online pension calculator is designed to help people gauge how much they will have to live on in retirement. The calculator's launch comes as new figures published today by the FSA reveal 31% of people may suffer an increase in financial problems when they enter retirement.
The research examines how life events such as unemployment, bereavement and household status affect levels of financial capability. Planning for financial security in retirement is especially important in the current economic climate, as more people than ever are facing difficult financial situations and finding their financial capability skills to be insufficient.
The pension calculator <http://www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk/tools/pension_calculator.html>, on the Moneymadeclear website, enables anyone with a pension fund from a previous employer, those paying into a new pension scheme, or people without any existing pension at all, to calculate their potential retirement income based upon regular payments. Further functionality will be added to the calculator in the future.
With personal circumstances frequently changing, users are also able to adapt the criteria to suit changing circumstances - for example, to see how their potential future income can be affected by retiring earlier or contributing more.
Chris Pond, FSA director of financial capability, said: "For many people, pensions are not something they want to think about until retirement is imminent and by then they may find their pension falls far short of the lifestyle they had hoped for. So it's important to do as much as possible to make the most of your money by considering all the choices available. The pension calculator can help you identify the implications of your pension choices and impact on later income to determine if you are on the right track."
