The news story quoted a number of cases, and in some of these the customer had paid thousands of pounds more than they needed to over a period of time. One individual was said to have paid around £3,500 more than he needed to, to Royal Sun Alliance insurance over a twenty year period. Other cases have since come to light in which regular-renewal customers have started to look around, and found big savings immediately – another customer telephoned Aviva and saved over £600 per annum on a house insurance and two car insurance policies.

If you you or someone you know has been paying increasing amount for the same insurance over a period of years, without checking alternative prices, Goodbye 9 to 5 says check around right now – setting aside half an hour every couple of years for a few phone quotes might easily save you hundreds of pounds.

These are the key findings of a nationwide study by Club Vita*, the longevity experts for private and public sector pension schemes.

But we’re gradually beginning to understand the impact of increased longevity on the funding of retirement income; whether by the state or via our own savings. Half of the respondents want to carry on working after they reach their formal retirement age, either by keeping their current job or switching careers.

And those just starting out seem to be the most accepting about the need to work for as long as possible. Over three quarters (77%) of 16-24 year-olds said that they would be prepared to work past the official retirement age, compared with under half of those over 55.

The research also shows a link between household income and plans at formal retirement age. Whereas almost 60% of those with the lowest household incomes expect to officially retire, less than 30% of the highest earners expect to do so.

Other findings:

• Nearly half (47%) of all respondents don’t think that the younger generation should help their parents financially in their retirement.
• 70% think that the younger generation will be unable to look after their parents.
• Almost 40% of 16-24 year-olds thought that the younger generation should provide financial support to their retired parents.
• 35% think that their generation will live 8 or more years longer than their parents’ generation.

Nick Flint, Chief Executive of Club Vita, said: “Provided we remain reasonably healthy, greater longevity is obviously a ‘good thing’, but it comes at a price.

“The UK population is slowly – very slowly – beginning to understand the link between longevity and retirement funding, at the state and personal level. We may not be living quite as long as some of those surveyed think – it’s actually around a five to six-year increase in typical lifespan from one generation to the next – but our increasing longevity will effect profound changes in our attitudes to work and subsequent retirement.”

Club Vita*

HMRC has launched a campaign called TaxBack, which aims to encourage pensioners who have overpaid tax on interest from savings to claim it back, and register for savings interest to be paid gross in future, if they are non-taxpayers.

Banks and building societies are required by law to deduct 20 per cent tax from the interest on everyone’s savings before it is paid.

But pensioners – and other savers – who are non-taxpayers, or people who qualify for the 10 per cent savings rate, will be entitled a repayment if their savings have been taxed at 20 per cent.

HMRC says it is simple to claim back this tax and can be done using HMRC Form R40.

In addition to claiming any overpaid tax back, non-taxpayers can also get future savings interest paid deduction of tax, by filling out the R85 form and sending it to their bank or building society.

Exchequer secretary to the Treasury Sarah McCarthy-Fry said, “We know times are tough for many pensioners, and we do not want anyone paying tax they do not need to. If you think you might have been overpaying tax on your savings, check the figures, and make a claim if you’re eligible”.

She add, “If it does not affect you, but you know someone it might – spread the word.”

HMRC is writing to some 3.4 million pension credit recipients, asking them to check if they have overpaid tax on their bank or building society interest. The letter will be accompanied by a helpsheet, which pensioners can use to help them calculate their annual income and allowances and whether they may be due some money back.

An estimated 540‚000 pensioner households will see their income increase by an average of £4 a week1 from November‚ after the Government changed the way income from savings is worked out for benefit purposes following an announcement in the Budget 2009. Some people with savings over £6‚000 who currently just miss out on benefits might also be brought into entitlement by the change and will need to make a claim.

Under the current system‚ when the Department for Work and Pensions checks someone’s entitlement for pension credit (or the local authority works out housing benefits or council tax benefit)‚ instead of including actual income from savings an ‘assumed income’ is taken into account. The first £6‚000 is ignored and after that every £500 over the £6‚000 level is counted as producing an extra £1-a-week income.

The new Budget provisions coming into force on 2 November will lift the so called ‘capital disregard’ limit from £6‚000 to £10‚000. For people with savings above £6‚000 in receipt of pension credit this means that the benefit money paid to them weekly will increase by up to £8 (see table below). The higher capital disregard will also apply to people aged 60 or over who receive council tax or housing benefit but not pension credit.

Although half a million pensioners will benefit from this change‚ up to £5.4 billion worth of means-tested benefits is still going unclaimed by older people each year.

Andrew Harrop‚ Head of Policy at Age Concern and Help the Aged‚ said:

“The changes to the way income from savings is worked out are good news for hundreds of thousands of older people who can certainly do with a small top-up to their weekly income.

“The fact that savings up to £10‚000 will be ignored for the purposes of working out benefit entitlements should encourage more older people on modest incomes to check whether they might be missing out on financial help which is rightfully theirs.

“This small improvement‚ though‚ won’t hide the fact that the means-tested system is failing to help many of the older people who most need its help. Up to £5 billion goes unclaimed by older people each year and one in three entitled pensioners aren’t claiming pension credit. This is why it is so important to move to a system of paying older people their entitlements automatically‚ rather than relying on them to claim”