Around 60 per cent of women are not contributing to a pension fund, according to market research.

HSBC estimates that thousands of women on career breaks are missing out on stakeholder pensions because they do not realise they can contribute whether they are working or not.

Nearly a quarter of women said they are not contributing because they are not working or only working part-time, and 44 per cent believe they have to be working to make pension contributions.

Career breaks, often taken by women to have or raise children, typically last between 18 months to five years.

An average woman aged 27 making £100 per month contributions to a stakeholder pension will save £165,000 for a retirement fund but if she deferred her pension contributions for five years she would only save £118,000 (28 per cent less).

Ian Martin, head of pensions and retirement income at HSBC, said: "While there has been some improvement in the level of understanding around pensions, the number of women delaying contributions or not contributing to a pension at all is worrying.

"This will seriously compromise their final retirement fund - particularly for those women who stop making contributions for a number of years while raising their children at home."