Just over one in five people with multiple pension pots have lost track of some of their savings, Aegon research finds.
Nearly two-thirds of savers (64%) have more than one pension pot, but 22% of those said they have lost track of one or all of these accounts, an increase from 21% in 2016.
Another 30% said they do not know the value of their pensions, falling from 39% two years ago.
The results come from a survey, commissioned by the provider, of 909 adults earlier this month, and could mean around seven million people have misplaced their retirement savings, once the figures are extrapolated to the general population.
Head of pensions Kate Smith said the figures were concerning.
“It’s very hard to plan for retirement without a full view of your savings and an understanding of what your state pension entitlement is likely to be,” she said. “So it’s concerning that the number of people who have lost track of their pensions has increased slightly.
“Without the bigger picture, people might be setting themselves up for a retirement fall without a clear idea of what their savings are worth. Nowadays the vast majority of jobs come with a pension and, as people frequently change jobs, it’s all too easy to lose track of your pensions, especially if they are small.”
A mooted solution is for the upcoming pensions dashboard to include a button allowing savers to consolidate all their defined contribution (DC) pots with one provider. However, the survey found just over a quarter (27%) would be interested in doing so, even if there were financial benefits.
Of these, 46% said they did not want all their eggs in one basket, while another 27% did not want to pay for advice. Another 27% said they did not know the benefits of consolidating their pots.
Smith said consolidation might be not the right thing for everyone, but said it may help keep track of auto-enrolment pots where savers frequently change jobs.