Why the French Say They Are Very Concerned About Their Retirement
Business owners, factory workers, and farmers are among those most concerned about their retirement. The study conducted by Mon Petit Placement also reveals that concern about retirement increases with age.
Two-thirds of French people do not (yet) have a plan to fund their retirement. They are deeply concerned about this issue, but a lack of funds to start planning for retirement and the current state of the retirement savings market in France are preventing them from taking action.
In an uncertain short-term environment, it is also extremely difficult to secure long-term protection through projects that are currently not very concrete. These are the main findings of the survey on retirement financing solutions conducted by Mon Petit Placement. Digital players, such as Mon Petit Placement, have a role to play in encouraging the French to take action and fund their retirement through simple, accessible, and turnkey investment solutions.
Business owners, factory workers, and farmers are among those most concerned about their retirement. The study conducted by Mon Petit Placement also reveals that concern about retirement increases with age.
Respondents who say they are not very concerned—or not at all concerned—about their retirement cite various reasons:
• 57% say their priority is managing their purchasing power and their day-to-day lives
• 25% believe it would be pointless because they won’t have a retirement pension
• 13% believe there is no solution that works for them
All of these reasons clearly demonstrate the French public’s interest in issues related to purchasing power and retirement savings. In fact, 41% of respondents believe they will be less well-off in retirement than they are now, and nearly 31% strongly agree that they will move down a social class upon retirement (for example, a manager whose retirement pension will be roughly equivalent to 50% of their final salary).
69% of French people are not planning for retirement because they can't find an easy solution
The current retirement savings market in France does not make it easy for individuals to understand. The market is dominated by large traditional players (banks, insurers, pension funds, and mutual insurance companies), offering savings products whose mechanisms are not necessarily well understood by the French public (life insurance and other non-retirement-specific products, individual or group retirement savings plans such as the PER, and employer-sponsored savings plans offered by companies to their employees). Traditional providers struggle to understand the needs of the French public when it comes to retirement. The segment of the population that is unfamiliar with the financial products available to plan for retirement finds itself, in effect, excluded from the discussion.
More than half of the study’s respondents are aware of ways to prepare for retirement (51%), but only 34% have taken financial steps toward that end (41% of men and only 27% of women). Those who have not taken any steps toward retirement (66%) do so because they do not have enough money (69% of them) or because they cannot find an easy solution (21%).
To help French people better understand how much their retirement benefits will be—with or without dedicated investments—Mon Petit Placement has launched an online simulator. By entering their age, current net salary, and the percentage of their salary they wish to invest in their retirement, users can view the amount of their basic retirement benefit as well as an estimate of their retirement benefits with Mon Petit Placement.
Funding your retirement: “Yes, but with an accessible, turnkey solution”
Yet the French are ready to start saving for retirement: 42% of respondents believe it is up to them to take charge of their retirement planning, and 48% consider that the best time to start planning for retirement is as early as possible. While the French people’s interest in and desire to plan for their retirement are very real, they still need an appropriate solution: 26% of respondents believe that figuring out how to plan for retirement is an uphill battle, and 39% would like to be offered a simple, turnkey solution. The main criteria that matter most to them are:
• Knowing it’s a safe investment (35%)
• Having a turnkey solution that’s easy to understand (33%)
• Being able to withdraw their money at any time (29%)
44% of respondents say they are fully prepared to save for retirement, and nearly 32% would be willing to save €100 to €150 per month.
