According to research conducted by French insurer AXA, at the age of 28, Britons are the youngest in the world to start planning for their retirement. However, research also revealed that one third of British consumers are depending on their property to provide adequate support come retirement.

AXA also confirmed that the average British person begins planning for retirement before taking their first step onto the property ladder, which the insurance company claimed to be at the age of 29.

Coming second after the Britons were those in Canada and the US, which saw the average age to start planning for retirement being 30, closely followed by the Australians at 31 years old. In comparison to other Europeans, UK citizens are far more prepared, with French, German and Italian workers all planning for retirement at the age of 31, while Spanish citizens wait until they are 33 before considering pension plans.

On average, the research revealed that young Britons save an enormous 10% of their salary towards their pension.

Steve Folkard, head of pensions and savings policy at AXA, comments: It’s exciting to see people starting to take more responsibility for their own income in retirement. However, homeowners have limited options for generating earnings from the property they live in.