Wealthy people can expect to live 20 YEARS longer in good health than those struggling to get by
The yawning gap in health and life expectancy between rich and poor people was revealed in new official figures this week.
Men in affluent areas tend to live more than a decade longer than those in the most deprived parts of England, while for women the gap is about eight years.
But the length of time better off people can expect to enjoy good health is much more stark, at 19-plus extra years for men and more than 20 years for women.
The latest figures are likely to reignite the debate about when people are allowed to start drawing on their state and private pensions.
The state pension age has just started increasing from 66 to 67 this month, saving the Treasury £10billion a year by the end of this parliament.
The minimum age you can start accessing private pensions will rise from 55 to 57 overnight on 6 April 2028.
Influential think-tank the Institute for Fiscal Studies recently published a report on how an increased state pension age reduces incomes and increases poverty rates among affected groups.
How long will you live? Find tips on how to get your finances in shape below
New figures on life expectancy between 2022 and 2024 released by the Office for National Statistics show life expectancy at birth in the most deprived areas of England was 73.2 years for men and 78.3 years for females.
That is compared with 83.6 and 86.4 years respectively in the richest areas of the country.
How long you might live increased across the board compared with 2019 to 2021, but remained lower than before the Covid-19 pandemic in the most deprived areas.
Meanwhile, in the latest figures healthy life expectancy at birth in the poorest regions was 49.8 years for men and 48.2 years for women, while in affluent areas it was 69.2 years and 68.5 years respectively.
'In the most deprived areas, men will spend an average of just 68 per cent of their life in good health, while for women it’s 62 per cent and in the least deprived areas, that rises to 83 per cent and 79 per cent, respectively,' says Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at investment platform AJ Bell.
'Life expectancy is rising again – albeit slowly – but the length of time we spend in good health is actually falling, with the proportion of our lives we’re healthy for also dropping in turn.
'This has serious implications for our finances, particularly at a time when the state pension age is rising.'
Coles says this means it’s more important than ever to consider this period of your life and make sure you have made any preparations possible - see her tips for keeping your finances resilient below.
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David Cooper, director at retirement specialist Just Group, says: 'Inequality represents a huge challenge because those from poorer areas are more likely to be forced out of the workforce earlier due to ill health, while also having fewer financial resources to fall back on before reaching state pension age.
'It sharpens the focus on the adequacy and flexibility of retirement income solutions. People may need access to their pension savings earlier, or in a more tailored way, to bridge gaps in income and support changing health needs over time.
'At the same time, the growing period spent in later life with complex health conditions reinforces the importance of planning for care, which remains one of the most significant – and often underestimated – financial risks in retirement.'
Cooper points out the ONS figures are useful because they are based on historic mortality and assume no impact from future medical breakthroughs or lifestyle improvements.
'A 65-year-old living in the same areas would be expected to have a significantly higher age of death because their life expectancy depends only on death rates beyond their age, whereas survival from birth is based on death rates at every age,' he says.
How to plan ahead in case of poorer health
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at AJ Bell, offers the following tips.
- It may mean building safety nets elsewhere through emergency savings, critical illness cover or income protection, to cover you at least until you are able to take money from your pension, she says.
- Take stock of whether you risk outliving your pension. If you plan to buy an annuity it will last for life, but if you plan to go into drawdown, it’s worth using a calculator to see how long that money is likely to last.
One sustainable option is just to take the natural yield from pension investments, so the capital remains intact. This income will vary, so it makes sense to have savings and investments outside your pension you can draw on if needs be.
It’s worth doing these calculations as soon as possible, to see whether you’re currently on track with your pension investments, or whether you need to consider tweaking your contributions.
- It could mean downsizing earlier in retirement, to manage declining health and free up cash if you need care further down the line.
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