Women encouraged to buy back NI contributions
Women are being urged to buy back their National Insurance contributions before the end of the tax year to maximise their pensions.
Scottish Widows reminds women that extra contributions currently cost £8.10 per week, but they are set to rise to £12.05 from the beginning of April.
Those who have taken time off work since 1996 could "drastically increase their pensions" through buying back missing contributions, according to Scottish Widows' head of pensions market development Ian Naismith.
He encourages women to check the Pensions Service website to find out by how much they could increase their state pension entitlement.
Mr Naismith adds: "This is particularly important for women who reach age 60 before April 2010."
A 2008 study by Scottish Widows found that having children can lead to inconsistent working patterns for women, which can prove a major barrier to saving consistently into a pension.
The figures revealed a gender gap in saving for retirement, with 46 per cent of women believed to be saving adequately compared to 55 per cent of men.
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