Marvin OnumonuWorkers in Northern Ireland and the North East are most at risk of poverty in retirement, research from Scottish Widows found.
Nearly half (48%) of people in these regions could struggle to cover their basic needs when they stop working.
The figure dropped to 34% in the South East and 32% in the East of England.
Scottish Widows and Frontier Economics looked at pension data against retirement living standards set by Pensions UK.
They found as many as two in five (39%) people across the UK might not meet basic retirement needs.
Regular pension savers were more confident in managing their money, with 85% saying they felt secure.
Scotland had the highest proportion of people not confident at 44%, followed by the North East at 38% and Northern Ireland at 37%.
London was lowest at 32%.
Susan Hope, Scottish Widows retirement expert, said: “The differences between people’s pension prospects across the UK are stark and highlight the scale of the challenge to crack the pensions crisis.
“Across towns, cities and rural communities, people are facing very different futures, the postcode divide needs to be urgently addressed.
“We need to equip people with the tools and information they need, to improve their confidence and capability regardless of where they live.”
Hope added: “The everyday pressures on people’s money doesn’t make this an easy task, so helping them to feel empowered to make decisions about their future whether that’s starting a pension, increasing contributions by or simply understanding how much you have saved and what that might look like in the future.
“Small steps now will make a big difference in the future, and these mustn’t be underestimated.”
