How COVID-19 Has Affected the Retirement Business

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Even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic uncertainty, Americans were struggling with retirement readiness.

In fact, Secure Retirement Institute^® (SRI^®) research reveals 40% of working Baby Boomers have less than $100,000 saved for retirement — 25% have less than $25,000.

The biggest challenge for many pre-retirees is ensuring their savings last throughout their retirement. An SRI study finds 4 in 10 pre-retirees are very concerned about outliving their assets and over half (53%) of Americans don’t believe their savings and investments will last if they live to age 90.

LIMRA research reveals that many Americans express significant financial worries as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. Among those surveyed, 56% are concerned about the pandemic’s long-term impact on their financial security, 14% have lost their job since the crisis began, 32% earn less income due to decreased hours or reduced pay, and 45% believe the economic downturn negatively affected their retirement prospects.

The pandemic’s severe impact on employment and finances also underscored the need for emergency savings. SRI research shows 3 in 10 workers do not have an emergency savings fund at all and 6 in 10 with an emergency fund say it would cover less than six months of expenses.

In our latest LIMRA Unplugged episode Alison Salka, Ph.D., senior vice president and head of LIMRA Research, chats with Yanela Frias, president of Prudential Retirement, about the challenges pre-retirees are facing and how the industry is working to guide them toward financial wellness.