“A substantial reduction of inequalities in life expectancy requires policy actions on a broad range of health determinants” This study assessed the effect of different risk factors on life expectancy differences between men and women in the Netherlands aged 35 to 80 years with a high or low education. The data were compared with figures for Northwest Europe. Risk factors considered were manual profession…

“HR policy aimed at sustainable employability helps ageing people stay in work” For many individuals it is challenging to continue to work until their retirement age. If they can no longer rely on income from work, individuals need to draw on social support schemes or their own means to provide for themselves. Longer working lives may improve ageing people’s financial position. A combination of…

“Partial retirement allows to reduce workload and maintain an adequate pension income.” Partial retirement before the state pension age allows people to reduce workload and maintain an adequate pension income at the same time. After a career of full-time work, those who retire part-time instead of full-time are much more likely to attain an income replacement of 70% during partial retirement, and subsequently a…

“Job characteristics such as flexibility relate to preferences to continue working for longer” Self-employed people on average prefer to continue working two years longer than their salaried counterparts. They are also more often uncertain about their future retirement age. Previous research suggests that this difference could partly be explained by the relatively limited pension savings of the self-employed. This study examines whether job characteristics…

“Combining a fixed and variable annuity has added value for participants” The Premium Schemes (Improvements) Act (Wet verbeterde premieregeling, Wvp) allows for continued investing following a person’s retirement date, but this is not without risks. We assess a number of continued investment strategies via a simulation study based on financial scenarios of De Nederlandsche bank (the Dutch central bank). We compare alternative ways of…

“Infographics can help potentially vulnerable investors make better decisions.” European investment funds have been including infographics in their mandatory information documents since 2012. Research shows that such visual depictions of the differences between major investment funds can help consumers with low financial literacy and little investment experience to significantly reduce avoidable fees. This effect is absent among retail investors with investment experience, although the…

Interview with Jan Kabátek (University of Melbourne) Pension systems in Western countries are under pressure and in many cases, individual savings are becoming more important. However, there is often still a considerable gap between what people need and what they actually save. “Financial education can have a positive effect on saving behavior. Which interventions are the most suitable, however, has only rarely been tested”,…

More freedom of choice, but not everybody avails themselves of the options to the same extent In the Netherlands, people who have a right to publicly funded nursing home care can choose to receive a personal budget (PGB) or a complete or modular home package (VPT or MPT). These arrangements increase the sense of freedom of care in a self-chosen setting: 20% of PGB…

“Long-term nursing home care constitutes a considerable financial risk for the middle class” One in five older people in the Netherlands will need nursing home care during their lifetime. Users must pay a portion of the cost themselves, as determined by their income- and wealth-dependent co-payment. This co-payment constitutes a considerable financial risk for middle-class seniors who need long-term nursing home care. For this…

“Letters with fear appeal are effective in increasing the basic knowledge of the pension system” The social sustainability of a new pension contract depends on its communication. It is therefore important to gain insight into the extent of a person’s pension awareness. Pension literacy is low. About 60% of people think, for example, that state pension contributions are partly invested and nearly a third…