Following on from my previous article, I feel that a small excerpt from Fidelity International's second white paper "Improving Britain's Retirement Prospects" was very enlightening.

"Only a minority of people use the services of a financial adviser, according to Fidelity's Retirement Savings Survey. About three-quarters of those interviewed said they had not consulted an adviser for assistance with their retirement planning.

Another clear inference from the research is that as people age, they are less willing to use an adviser. Nearly 60% of full-time workers aged over 55 said they would take care of their own retirement planning rather than see an adviser. The number of do-it-yourself planners rose to 75% for those already in retirement. By contrast, nearly 30% of people under 35 may contact an adviser in future.

There is some evidence, however, that using the services of an adviser can improve an individual's retirement readiness. About 30% of people who consult an adviser had a retirement fund worth at least £50,000 at retirement, compared with 15% of the unadvised respondents in the survey.

A more graphic illustration of the benefits of using an adviser can be found in the responses from retireees to the question: did you have to cut back on your life-style when you retired? Some 70% of advised retirees answered no - they continue to enjoy the same quality of living as previously. The picture was less rosy among the unadvised retirees. Only 40% answered no, meaning that a clear majority have had to scale back their spending in retirement."