How to protect your pension: key rules and practical tips

Employers in the UK must automatically enrol eligible employees into a workplace pension if they are UK residents aged between 22 and state pension age and earning more than £10,000 a year, £192 a week or £822 a month in the 2025/26 tax year. The total minimum contribution to a workplace scheme is 8%, with part paid by employers and boosted by tax relief.

Workers are able to opt out, but the guidance warns that doing so means turning down employer contributions and tax relief and missing out on potential stock market growth. "The earlier you start, the better," says Mark Smith of Pension Attention, who notes people who opt out will be automatically enrolled again after three years.

Research from L&G found one in seven recent or prospective homeowners have paused, reduced or never paid into a pension to prioritise buying a home; the article also notes lifetime ISAs let those under 40 save up to £4,000 a year with a 25% government top-up until age 50, but withdrawals before 60 are subject to a 25% charge unless used to buy a home.

When earnings rise, the piece suggests increasing contributions and checking whether an employer will match extra payments; Smith says an extra 1% can add significantly to a final pot. Hargreaves Lansdown’s calculator is cited showing a 22-year-old on £25,000 paying the auto-enrolment minimum (5% employee, 3% employer) could expect about £155,000 by age 68, rising to £194,000 if contributions rose by 1% each.