Almost one in five (19%) people with multiple pensions believe they have lost track of at least one pension pot, Standard Life has found.

The financial services firm’s survey of 2,000 UK adults, conducted by Opinium, found that despite the potential benefits of consolidating pensions, almost three quarters (74%) of those with more than one workplace pension say they have not combined their pension pots.

Benefits of consolidation include less admin and filing, a greater ability to track performance, increase understanding of how much is being saved and possible lower charges.

Standard Life also found that 32% of respondents are unsure of how to start consolidating, while 12% find the process "too difficult".

An estimated 2.8 million pension pots, which are valued at over £26.6bn, remain unclaimed in the UK.

The firm said that with the average person having at least 11 employers in their working lifetime, the process of tracking down pensions and managing them simultaneously is proving to be a challenge for many.

Managing director of retail direct at Standard Life, Dean Butler, said: "We know that people who actively plan for their retirement are more confident and financially secure but if you don’t know where all your savings are, you can’t begin to calculate their value, making planning unnecessarily difficult. Sometimes people have a vague idea of having a pension with a previous employer but then just don’t know how to go about finding it."

In order to simplify the consolidation process, Standard Life has partnered with fintech firm, Raindrop, to tackle the problem for pension savers.

Once registered, in two steps, the pension finding process can begin. Through providing an employer’s name and time period employed, rather than details of a pension provider in each previous role, Raindrop’s technology can trace the pot between an average of four to six weeks.

During this time, a case manager will provide updates on the process.

Since the launch of the platform, Raindrop has located £325m in lost pension savings across more than 27,000 pots.

Butler added: "Our new pension finding service removes the major hurdles that people face and allows them to regain control of their pensions savings. We want to help them trace any missing pensions, so they don’t ever lose them again and are better prepared to organise their retirement savings."

Co-founder at chief commercial officer at Vivan Shridharani, added: "Millions of UK savers have lost pensions, often unsure of how to begin their search. As each new generation has more jobs than the last, the number of lost pensions continues to grow. We’re committed to helping savers, with a simple solution to easily find their lost pensions and help them better prepare for their financial future.

"By partnering with Standard Life, one of the UK’s largest pensions providers, we hope to empower savers to locate lost pots and take control of their long-term financial planning."

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