The research revealed five key risks for retirement in order of perceived seriousness: inflation, asset allocation, long-term care, longevity and withdrawal. Inflation caused the most concern whereas longevity was surprisingly low on the list.

Few people thought about their spending patterns long term, with the report revealing a U-shaped expenditure pattern for retirement: high income in the productive years, followed by a decline in spending, followed by a rise in care costs. This "decumulation" pattern could mean retirement funds being exhausted early.

The survey, entitled Sense Check at 60, was conducted in two parts: first through a focus group of 50 people carried out in May 2010 in London, Birmingham and Leeds; secondly, a quantitative online survey of 1,021 people. High net worth consumers are defined as those with £500,000 (around $770,000) and over in retirement savings according to this study.

Sun Life Financial of Canada is part of a global financial services organisation headquartered in Toronto, Canada. As at 30 June 2010, Sun Life Financial of Canada had £11.6 billion assets under management in the UK.