Yvonne Seiler Zimmermann, for the last four years you have been conducting a study on the Swiss population’s knowledge on the subject of retirement provision. Which developments have you observed over this period?
Unfortunately, pension knowledge has not improved,despite all the information provided and discussions held in connection with various important votes in recent years. Knowledge of how Switzerland’s three
pillar pension system specifically works is fairly limited in spite of these efforts. What strikes me are the gaps
in people’s knowledge of personal retirement provision in particular – even though this topic affects each and every one of us.
What are the reasons for this lack of knowledge?
The younger generations generally devote little atten
tion to retirement planning, even though they have the most leverage due to their long investment horizons.
When you finish your apprenticeship or graduate from university, retirement still seems a long way off. How
ever, when it’s just around the corner, there is often little leeway to make up pension shortfalls. One of the goals of our study is to raise awareness of this issue.
For example, some 40 per cent of those surveyed had either no or very little understanding of their insurance certificate. However, a particularly worrying insight
was that many of these people were not prepared to find things out for themselves or fill the gaps in their knowledge. Most of them regarded the issue as too complicated or were not willing to put in the required effort.
The young generations devote little attention to retirement planning, even though they have the most leverage.
Professor Yvonne Seiler Zimmermann, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
What effects do these knowledge gaps have for individuals?
The main problem is not the lack of knowledge, but people’s ignorance about the gaps in their knowledge,which is something we observe again and again in our studies. A person who incorrectly believes them
selves to be well informed will seek less advice and will therefore inevitably end up making bad decisions with regard to their personal retirement provision.
The main problem is people’s ignorance about the gaps in their knowledge.
Professor Yvonne Seiler Zimmermann, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
What are the biggest concerns of the Swiss population when it comes to the issue of retirement provision?
Demographic change and the persistent lowinterestrate environment are endangering the sustainable financing of the second pillar. Most employees in Switzerland are aware of these challenges. Around three fifths of those surveyed did not believe that they would receive enough money from the AHV/AVS and the second pillar to maintain their accustomed standard of living after retirement. One particularly interesting finding is that women trust the pension system even less than men.
Our retirement provision concept is based not only on the AHV/AVS and the occupational benefits system but also on personal responsibility –especially in the third pillar.
The state must have an interest in ensuring good levels of pension knowledge among the population.
This will boost personal responsibility and reduce social expenditure, for example on social assistance or supplementary benefits. Furthermore, people who are well informed will also support necessary structural changes to the pension system.