State Pension 'Shortfall Day' will see most older people spending their full annual payment by this month

dailyrecord.co.uk:

There are nearly three months of the year still to go, however, October 5 marks ‘State Pension Shortfall Day’. This is point in 2023 when the average single pensioner would have exhausted their full annual State Pension payment from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) - the full New State Pension is worth just over £10,600 this financial year - and be reliant on private pension income or other savings to bridge the gap.

According to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures, the average single pensioner spends £267.30 a week or around £13,900 a year.

It leaves a shortage of £3,300 - or a period of around three months with the State Pension running out on October 5, 2023. Two-person retired households spend proportionately less per person on average, with many expenses shared but not doubling in price.

Their mean expenditure comes in at £492.60 per week or £25,615 a year.If both retirees have a full New State Pension providing annual income of £21,200 that leaves a deficit of £4,415 over the course of the year with State Pension Shortfall Day falling on October 29.Stephen Lowe, group communications director at retirement specialist Just Group, said: “At a time when the State Pension is under the spotlight, State Pension Shortfall Day sets out how the income it provides matches up to the amount the average retiree spends over the course of a year.“Although the State Pension looks set to be boosted by a second significant increase it is unlikely it will provide more than a very basic income. ‘Shortfall day’ is a notional date given State Pension payments are spread through the year, but it highlights the need to build up extra pension or other savings to provide that valuable extra income in later