Reality TV’s Gemma Collins is calling on the UK to ‘Pay Your Pension Some Attention’ with a light-hearted new campaign. The reality star features in a parody beauty advert tackling getting older and the effects of ageing, which is one of the top concernsi of UK adults over the age of 35.
The Only Way Is Essex (TOWIE) star is urging Brits to forget fears of fine lines, or worries about wrinkles, and instead prioritise pension provision when thinking about later life.
Pension Attention is an industry-led engagement campaign coordinated by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) and funded by a large proportion of the pensions industry.
New research found that six in 10 (57%) Britons bought anti-ageing products in the last 12 months, such as moisturiser or anti-wrinkle cream, while just one in five (23%) organised their finances for later life.
In the last year, UK adults were more than four times more likely to purchase products to fight the physical signs of ageing (e.g. wrinkle creams, grey hair treatments, collagen tablets), than they were to increase their pension contributions.
The national pension engagement drive is urging the nation to act now and engage with their retirement plans. The campaign directs the public to pensionattention.co.uk, which includes three short films featuring Gemma Collins and money expert Iona Bain, explaining the small steps you can take today to help your future self:
- Find out if you have any lost pension pot savings
- Log in to your pension accounts and check what you’ll get when you retire
- Picture your future self and how much you’ll need in retirement
Also backing the campaign, money expert and financial journalist Iona Bain, commented: “Your pension is a powerful key to living your best life in retirement, but it's not just something older people have to think about. The earlier you start looking at and paying into your pension, the better.
“The good news is that most people are entitled to a workplace pension – the problem is that many people lose track of them and don’t check them regularly. One relatively easy win is to track down all your old pensions, which you may have paid into in previous jobs. To help take you through it step by step, visit the Pension Attention website today.”
Commenting on the campaign, Mark Smith, spokesperson for the Pension Attention campaign said: “By getting Gemma Collins on board and money expert, Iona Bain, we’re hoping to encourage everyone to get to know their pensions a little better.
“Most working people in the UK have a pension, but many don’t know how to find information about these savings. We’re asking all UK adults to think about where their pensions are, what’s in them and to ensure that things like names and addresses are up to date.”
To help you get started, visit www.pensionattention.co.uk today.
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Notes to editor
Pension Attention commissioned OnePoll to survey a nationally representative sample of 2,000 UK adults aged 18+ in July 2024.
For more information contact:
Liam Reeves
N: (0)7398 268187
Natasha Chudasama
Niamh Finnie
About the Pension Attention Campaign
Pension Attention is an industry-led engagement campaign coordinated by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) to boost people’s understanding and engagement with their pension. The campaign is made possible thanks to the generous support of our sponsors: Aviva, Fidelity, Legal & General, NatWest Cushon, Nest, NOW: Pensions, Pru, Royal London, Scottish Widows, Smart Pension, Standard Life, and The People’s Pension.