Offside rule easier to explain than pension

The survey found one in five adults said they could explain the offside rule, compared to just one in 20 who felt confident describing a pension.

The survey asked 2,000 individuals to rank a series of concepts in terms of their confidence of explaining them. Only one in 10 thought they could most easily explain life insurance. 

Income drawdown – the way many people will soon be able to access their pension savings – came out even worse in the poll. More people thought it would be easier to explain the ‘big bang’ and particle physics.

Income drawdown, the way many people will soon be able to access their pension savings, came out even worse in the poll, with more people thinking it would be easier to explain the ‘big bang’ and particle physics.

Friends Life managing director of corporate benefit Colin Williams says: “This just goes to show just how important it is that consumers have at least some understanding of their finances. The offside rule is notoriously tricky to describe, so to hear that more people would find it easier to explain than a pension or life insurance is a concern.” 

“Pensions, annuities, income protection – these are terms that more people need to be aware of because they’re important financial products.

“Getting more people able to explain income drawdown over the offside rule might be a little ambitious, but as the world of retirement is changing we need to make sure people’s understanding increases as well.”

“Which of the following would you find easiest to explain?”