Playing the Generation Game: a re-examination of saving behaviour around retirement

We explore how men's hourly wages and the consumption and income patterns of households headed by men aged 53-67 evolve as the men age towards retirement and cross the retirement threshold. We make use of cross-section data from the Family Expenditure Survey and Family Resource Survey, but check for sample selection bias in our estimates of hourly wage movements using data from the British Household Panel Survey. We find that households including men entitled to occupational pensions, and particularly those headed by men who stayed at school beyond 16, are largely able to smooth their consumption across the retirement threshold. Relevant households with no access to occupational pensions show sharp falls in consumption on retirement.