A fifth, 20%, of people don’t know what type of pension they have.

More than half, 53%, of Brits claim to be knowledgeable about pensions but only a third of them could correctly identify a DB or DC scheme.

Some 16% of people said they don't know what a workplace pension is, and 20% admitted they were unsure of what type of pension they currently have.

Aviva, which commissioned the survey, said the figures reinforce the need for greater financial literacy and support in the UK.

The research also showed that more than half, 57%, of people do not know that the government contributes to pensions in the form of tax relief.

The concerning gap between perceived and actual knowledge around pensions in the UK is higher among men that women, with 64% of men vs 43% of women saying they know what they need to know about pensions.

Younger people were also mistakenly confident about their pension knowledge.

Those aged 25–34 were the most confident with 76% saying they were sure they knew what they needed to about pensions.

But that didn’t equate to understanding with just 44% of the age group able to correctly identify the characteristics of a DB pension, and only 45% knew the features of a DC scheme.

Doug Brown, chief executive of insurance, wealth & retirement, at Aviva, said: “The findings clearly show that, while confidence is high, people’s knowledge and understanding of pensions doesn’t necessarily match that self-assurance.

“Financial literacy is the cornerstone of financial wellbeing. By empowering people with better pension knowledge and the tools they need, we aim to help them make informed decisions about their financial futures to help them get ready for retirement.”

• The research was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2002 national representative respondents. The data was collected between 31 March and 4 April.