One in six parents fear they will need kids to support them

One in six parents over the age of 40 worry they will need to ask their children to support them financially in retirement, a new study has found.

Retirement income product provider MetLife found 16 per cent of over-40s "worry they will need to ask their offspring to bail them out… as they will not have saved enough for a comfortable retirement," says the Daily Mirror.

That was around half of the proportion who said their "retirement saving is not on track".

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Parents may be falling short because they have dipped into their savings to give to their children, who are facing hefty costs for housing and education in particular, the Mirror adds.

Even more people, 45 per cent of those surveyed, said they worried about the level of risk they will need to take to generate an adequate income in retirement, which could mean they avoid the guaranteed income of an annuity for invested options.

MetLife UK management director Simon Massey said: "It is a bit of a role reversal when it's retired parents banking on their children for money and will have an impact on how much the children can save for their own retirement.

"Planning for the long-term and reducing the risk of running out of money in retirement is one of the key challenges for savers."

The Mirror tells readers to tackle outstanding debt, including by overpaying their mortgages, top up pension funds where possible and consider downsizing once their children have moved away in order to save for retirement.