Our society is rapidly digitizing, including in the pension sector. Pension communication, choice guidance, and participant surveys are increasingly taking place via digital channels.

For many people, this makes life easier, but for others it does not. People with limited digital skills experience barriers to obtaining information and making informed choices. Although exact figures are not available, an estimated 2.5 to 4 million Dutch people have difficulty with everyday digital life. These problems are increasing as non-digital alternatives disappear and the necessary digital skills become increasingly complex.

The AFM therefore explicitly calls on pension administrators to take the digital skills of participants into account in research and choice guidance. With this study, we are taking a first step, together with ABP, towards a better understanding of people with low digital skills, so that communication, (online) support services, and research can better take this vulnerable target group into account.