15% of UK Parents Plan to Spend Retirement Savings, Fueling 'Skiing' Over Inheritance
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Sep 21
15% of UK Parents Plan to Spend Retirement Savings, Fueling 'Skiing' Over Inheritance
1 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Sep 21
Summary
One in seven UK parents—15%—now say they would rather use their money in retirement than leave it to their children, reflecting a broader “skiing” trend of spending the kids’ inheritance.
Defined-contribution pensions are helping drive that shift, Standard Life said, because unlike final-salary schemes they can run down, making retirees more focused on using savings while they can still enjoy them.
Examples in the report include Sarah Moorhouse, 64, who takes four or five holidays a year, and Karen Green, 60, who spends more than £10,000 annually on trips and says she expects to leave little or no legacy.
The pattern is not universal: 16% of UK pensioners and 15.4% of US pensioners live in poverty, though private pension coverage remains widespread at 69% in the UK and 56% in the US.
Expectations of inheritance are already softening in the US, where the share of people expecting money from parents fell to 20% last year from 25% in 2024.