4 Results
This section summarises the findings of the analyses which sought to address the following key areas: which factors are associated with membership; whether the respondent had undertaken any financial planning and whether one chose to opt-in or opt-out of the scheme. Of central interest is the extent to which the contributions to KiwiSaver represent additional savings rather than simply a substitution from other forms of saving or debt reduction.
Respondents were asked whether they expected to experience a change in living standards in retirement. In addition, they were asked to estimate the income they expected to have in retirement as well as the level of income they would need in order to meet their basic needs or to be comfortable respectively. This information was then used to construct measures of any shortfall with respect to their expected retirement income. These estimates are presented together with factors associated with the magnitude of the shortfall. The section concludes with an assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme (in relation to its stated purpose) and the possible impact on national saving.
