Around half of Swedes mistakenly think that they need to make their own choices about their workplace pension, research from Sweden's AMF has found, raising concerns around how much savers understand about the occupational pension system.

In Sweden, people automatically receive an occupational pension if they have a job with a collective agreement, with this money automatically placed in a traditional insurance with a selected company if the saver makes no specific choices.

However, when asked, half of savers thought that you needed to make their own choices about their occupational pension, while one in five were unsure and three out of ten were aware that you don't have to choose.

In addition to this, nearly half (44 per cent) said that they are not interested in choosing a savings form or pension company, while just over half (51 per cent) said that they would be interested in making a choice about their occupational pension.

This misconception was particularly common amongst privately employed civil servants, as AMF found that nearly two thirds (63 per cent) believe they have to make a choice, and six in ten (64 per cent) are interested in choosing.

AMF insurance manager, Marie Litezings, warned that this low level of pension knowledge is "problematic", creating unnecessary stress for savers if they think they have to get involved when in fact it is the opposite.

"Sweden has a system where you don't have to choose, but where you can if you want," she stated.

"In addition to the savings form, you can choose, for example, repayment protection and survivor protection, which can be good to review during the different phases of life, but everyone should also feel calm about having good pension savings even if you do nothing at all."

And this lack of involvement was a key priority amongst Swedes, as almost 7 out of ten (65 percent) said that they want a savings that does not require their own commitment, but instead experienced managers who manage the investments.

Security was another top priority, as 61 per cent of respondents said that they are looking for secure savings with a guarantee.

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