A major overhaul of the state pension system could save £19billion annually by the mid-2030s.
The Intergenerational Foundation said reforming the triple lock would eventually deliver savings equivalent to almost £1,000 for every working household across Britain.
It estimates annual savings would rise to £28.5billion by 2040 and £38billion by 2045.
The triple lock, introduced in 2011, guarantees the state pension rises each year by the highest of inflation, average earnings growth or 2.5 per cent.
The policy has increased pension incomes significantly, with pensioners now around £1,300 a year better off than if payments had only tracked inflation.
Critics say the system has become increasingly costly, with expenditure rising by 70 per cent in real terms over the past two decades.
Under the foundation’s proposal, state pension increases would continue to follow inflation until 2030‑31.
After that, annual rises would be based on the average of inflation and wage growth rather than the highest figure.
Triple lock overhaul could save £19billion a year as think tank proposes major state pension shake-up
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The organisation said this approach would maintain protection against rising living costs while reducing the larger increases generated under the current formula.
It also proposed using part of the savings to support pensioners on the lowest incomes through a new £30 weekly supplement, worth £1,560 a year.
The payment would go to pension credit recipients, whose incomes are currently topped up to £238 a week for single pensioners and £363.25 for couples.
The supplement is estimated to cost £1.9billion annually by 2035, around 10 per cent of the projected savings.
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How the state pension triple lock has changed over the years | GB NEWS / FIDELITY INTERNATIONAL Conor Nakkan, policy analyst at the Intergenerational Foundation, said the triple lock had become “an expensive and poorly targeted policy”.
The state pension bill has risen from £86billion in 2005 to an expected £146billion this year, increasing from 4.14 per cent of GDP to around five per cent.
The Tony Blair Institute has warned spending could reach 7.8 per cent of GDP by 2070 without further reform.
Tom Selby of AJ Bell said the triple lock had limited wider discussions on long‑term pension reform and warned that maintaining the policy could increase pressure for further rises in the state pension age.
The state pension age is due to rise from 66 to 67 by April 2028, with a further increase to 68 planned between 2044 and 2046.