Bank of Mum and Dad sacrificing pension money to help adult children

One in five parents with adult children have used cash originally intended for their pension to help their offspring, a survey has found.

Some 19% of those surveyed for Prudential had taken money out of their pension fund or sacrificed saving for their retirement to help their children financially.

A further 19% have also made cutbacks to their lifestyles so that their cash could go to their children.

Nearly three-fifths (59%) of those who have lent money to their offspring have later decided to write off some or all of the debt - with a generous third (34%) having written off the whole lot.

Three-quarters (75%) of parents who have loaned money did not impose any conditions or specific repayment terms on their loans, despite 77% initially expecting to be repaid in full.

Kirsty Anderson, a retirement income expert at Prudential, said: "Whether it's helping with a deposit to buy or rent a house, or clearing student debt, the Bank of Mum and Dad plays a vital role in the finances of younger people.

"However, it is important that parents remember to consider their own futures when deciding on making loans to their families - for example, money taken now from savings and investments intended to provide for retirement could make a real dent in your income when the time comes to give up work, especially if you eventually have to write off all or some of the loan."

Prudential's research also found those parents who expect to be eventually repaid are giving their children a generous amount of time to pay off their loans.

Nearly a third (31%) expect repayments to take up to three years, and one in six (16%) expect to wait between three and 10 years before the money is back in their accounts.

More than 1,000 parents with children aged over 16 years old were surveyed.