As for pensions, I learned fairly early in life (in my mid-20s) that paying into pension plans (either through work or privately) was largely a mug's game, as the main beneficiaries are almost always the companies making interest on your earnings!
And if the pension company or business you've been paying funds into for years goes bust, before you retire or the policy is due to pay out - what happens to all the money you've invested...?
No, I decided early on that the best way of securing my future was to utilise my selling/entrepreneurial skills, and accrue assets through working hard and/or smart (largely from starting my own business, which fortunately was a success), which in future would have sufficient value to help fund my old age. That's why, among other things, I dabbled in the property market, by judiciously investing money into it, using some of the profits I'd made from my business.
Therefore, my 'pension' now (and Del's) is tied up in bricks and mortar: properties we bought at a good price when the market was less buoyant, have gained significant value since and now own outright, thus can sell when necessary.
My advice? Try and have a plan that secures your future, but which doesn't rely on the success or survival of outside influences. Too many folks are born with skillsets that are never properly utilised, or to earn them a living, by turning what they're good at into cash, so years of their lives are wasted working for companies and making others money instead!
Always try and be as self-sufficient and in control of your life and destiny as possible, as more often than not it pays dividends
Marco.