In Quilter’s 2026 survey, retirees who had received financial advice were much less likely than those who had never received advice to say they expected to take no action in response to future retirement-policy changes. The finding describes expectations, not actions later confirmed—and it shows an association, not that advice caused people to respond.
What did the survey find about expected responses?
Quilter reported that 11% of advised retirees expected to take no action in response to future retirement-policy changes, compared with 79% of retirees who had never received financial advice. Put another way, the groups differed sharply in how many expected to respond. The figures do not tell us what respondents ultimately did.
The result comes from the Retirement Lifestyle Report 2026, a survey of 5,002 UK retirees. Censuswide conducted the initial research from 23 March to 7 April 2026 and follow-up polling from 28 May to 11 June 2026; the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) analysed the findings. Quilter’s report summary describes the survey and methodology.
What retirees said they had already changed
Separately from the question about future policy changes, 69% of retirees said they had changed their financial plans in response to government policies or proposals over the previous year. That is a retrospective report of changes respondents said they had made—not a measure of what they expect to do next.
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Quilter also reported intentions linked to pension inheritance-tax reforms: 29% planned to spend more pension savings during their lifetime, 26% intended to give away more pension wealth, and 24% planned to access pension savings earlier than originally intended. These are stated plans, not evidence that those actions have happened.
How do the satisfaction figures fit in?
Quilter reported separate measures of satisfaction with retirement income. Among retiree households currently receiving financial advice, 92% said they were satisfied, compared with 74% of retiree households overall and 47% of retirees who had never sought advice. These are household-level figures, except that the last comparison is described as retirees who had never sought advice.
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For individuals, Quilter separately reported that 88% of advised retired people were satisfied with their retirement income, compared with 43% of those who had never received advice. Do not treat these individual figures as interchangeable with the household comparison: the populations and measures differ.
Does the survey prove financial advice makes retirees act?
No. The survey finds an association between advice status and expected responses, but it does not establish that advice caused the difference. The available source material does not say whether advised and unadvised groups were matched or whether factors such as wealth, income, health, or confidence were controlled.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Quilter’s retirement specialist Kirsty Anderson said, “Our research shows that receiving financial advice is the strongest predictor of financial confidence and satisfaction in retirement.” That is Quilter’s characterization of its findings, not proof of a causal effect. The release also quotes Anderson saying, “Advice provides structure, context and a framework for decision-making.” Quilter’s 2 October 2026 release reports the comparisons and quotations.
The release suggests advised retirees may have more diversified sources of retirement income and greater confidence in their long-term plans. Those differences could be relevant to how people respond to policy changes, but the reported comparison does not isolate the effect of advice itself.
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What can a retiree take from the findings?
The figures suggest that advice status and readiness to respond to policy changes go together in this survey. They do not show that every advised person will act, that every person without advice will stay put, or that a particular response is financially preferable. Policy changes can affect people differently depending on their circumstances, so the survey cannot determine what any one reader should do.
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