More Swedes are saving privately for their retirement but are using products not suited to pension saving, according to Skandia.

A survey by Novus on behalf of Skandia found that 62 per cent of Swedes say they regularly save for a private pension compared to 56 per cent in 2020.

Among those who save, investment savings accounts are by far the most common form of savings, especially among younger savers. Other popular forms of savings are endowment insurance, a savings account and property.

Skandia pension economist, Mattias Munter, commented: “The main reason for not saving even though you want to is that you do not consider yourself able to afford it. At the same time, more than one in three say that they simply prioritise other things. My advice is to still try to get started with long-term savings. Time is namely a saver's best friend and even a small saving grows in the long run.”

“It is unfortunate that today we do not have a pure form of savings for our own pension savings. We see in the survey that many people choose forms of savings for their pension money that are directly inappropriate, such as a savings or bank account.

“Amortizing your home to get low housing costs as a pensioner is a wise strategy to make pensions last longer. But to see a home as savings capital to live off as a pensioner is not something I recommend. It is extremely difficult in 20-30 years' time to speculate on the possibilities and willingness to sell your home and move to something cheaper.”

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