NAPF survey shows DB decline accelerating

Private sector final salary pensions are closing to new entrants at the fastest rate since 2005, according to the National Association of Pension Funds.

Its annual survey, of 1,018 schemes run by 280 firms, found that only 13% were open to new joiners in 2012, down from 19% in 2011. Meanwhile 31% are closed to existing staff, up from 23% the previous year. 

The NAPF said it believed higher liabilities created by quantitative easing and low gilt yields have prompted a barrage of fresh closures.

NAPF chief executive Joanne Segars (pictured) said those staring a new job in the private sector would have 'next to no chance of getting a final salary pension'.

‘The pressures on final salary pensions have proven too great for many businesses,' she said. 'The growing liabilities fuelled by quantitative easing will have been a factor behind the record hike in closures.’

The survey show around half of employers offering final salary pensions were planning to close them in favour of defined contribution schemes.