Pension Wise service evaluation: research with 2017/18 customers

Pension Wise is a national pensions guidance service backed by Government and delivered in partnership with other organisations. The service provides free, impartial guidance to those who are aged 50 and over with defined contribution pensions that have not already been accessed. It provides information and guidance on the options available to people when accessing their pension money, which expanded following the introduction of new pension freedoms in April 2015. From January 2019 Pension Wise service will become part of the Single Financial Guidance Body, alongside the Money Advice Service and The Pensions Advisory Service.

Ipsos was commissioned to carry out this research with customers of the Pension Wise service to explore customer satisfaction and advocacy for the service. It also aimed to understand the impact of the service in terms of customer’s understanding of their pension options, customers’ confidence in avoiding scams and the positive steps customers are taking towards finalising their pension access arrangements. The survey followed a previous set of comparable surveys that Ipsos carried out in late 2016 and early 2017. Findings from this research will be used to support future design and delivery of the Pension Wise service within the Single Financial Guidance Body.

Customers report high satisfaction with the Pension Wise service and feel they have improved their understanding of their pension options:

• More than nine out of ten customers (92%) are satisfied with their experience of Pension Wise
• Almost all customers (97%) feel that their understanding of their pension options was improved after their Pension Wise appointment.
• 95% of customers would recommend the service to others, or have already done so.  
• 92% of customers feel confident in their ability to avoid pension scams.

Download the report and questionnaires from the GOV.UK website

Technical note

• We carried out an initial survey of Pension Wise appointment bookers over the phone and online between 15 October 2017 and 27 January 2018.
• This was with a sample of 1,976 UK adults aged 50+ who booked a telephone or face-to-face appointment with the Pension Wise service between September and November 2017. Of these, 1,790 completed their appointments – these are the main group analysed in the report, and referred to as Pension Wise customers.
• A follow-up survey was then conducted between 21 January and 14 April 2018, with 856 Pension Wise customers who had taken part in the initial survey.  
• In addition, 936 people who did not have a Pension Wise appointment but would have been eligible for the service in the last 12 months were also surveyed in February 2018. This helped evaluate the impact of the Pension Wise service on the decisions customers made about their pension options, relative to those who were eligible but did not have a Pension Wise appointment.
• The results are weighted to represent the profile of Pension Wise customers.