Individuals who become disabled before starting their careers could face retirement with pension savings more than £245,327 lower than their non-disabled counterparts, new research from PensionBee reveals.
The online retirement savings provider's report, titled "Sick, Tired and Never Retired?", attributes this substantial gap to a combination of limited earning potential, reduced pension scheme participation, and elevated costs in later life.
According to the modelling, someone disabled during childhood who works part-time throughout their career would accumulate a pension pot of just £109,886, compared with £355,213 for a non-disabled person in full-time employment.
The research draws on survey responses from over 900 disabled individuals across the UK, alongside pension projections based on Office for National Statistics (ONS) disability pay gap figures.
Pension crisis as thousands face £245,000 retirement savings gap in 'quadruple whammy' hit
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The survey findings paint a stark picture of financial anxiety among disabled people, with 91 per cent expressing concern about their future financial security and more than half saying they worry "a lot" about it.
Nearly half of respondents reported having no pension provision whatsoever beyond the state pension, while among those who do have some savings, 52 per cent have accumulated less than £10,000.
Notbaly, the overwhelming majority, 84 per cent, said their disability had negatively affected their capacity to save for retirement.
Perhaps most significantly, 46 per cent of those surveyed became disabled before reaching 30, meaning nearly half encountered financial obstacles before their working lives had properly begun.
New research is shining light on the inequality disabled Britons face when it comes to work and pensions
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Families rush to gift pension wealth ahead of inheritance tax overhaul | GETTYOne in four people in the UK are now classified as disabled, rising from one in five a decade ago. The report's modelling demonstrates that the timing of disability onset dramatically affects long-term financial outcomes.
Those becoming disabled at 30 and subsequently moving to part-time work would retire with £207,328, creating a gap of £147,885 compared to non-disabled full-time workers.
For individuals disabled at 50, the pension shortfall narrows to £41,447, with projected savings of £313,766. These projections are likely conservative, as they assume uninterrupted employment and exclude periods without work.
These findings coincide with the Second Pensions Commission's interim report, which identifies disabled people among those facing persistent structural barriers to adequate retirement savings.
Disabled Britons receive extra financial support through PIP | GETTYThe Commission noted that more than half of disabled people at age 46 possess no pension wealth at all, with current automatic enrolment rules excluding approximately four million employees from pension saving entirely.
Becky O'Connor, the head of Pensions at PensionBee, described the challenges facing disabled people as a "quadruple whammy" affecting their retirement prospects: "constrained earnings and reduced labour market participation; the need to work longer despite health limitations; likely higher care costs later in life; and a greater likelihood of renting rather than owning in retirement."
She added: "Nine in 10 disabled people worry about their financial future. Sadly, that anxiety is rational, and demands a policy response that goes beyond short-term benefit reform."
The report's publication coincides with the ongoing Timms Review, the Government's examination of how disability affects people's ability to learn, work and earn.