Britain’s pensioners have become a nation of silver surfers, with the internet overtaking more traditional pastimes such as DIY and gardening.
According to new research from the insurance company AXA, Britons are amongst the top five web users in the 11 nations surveyed for its global study.
Activities such as chatting to friends, emailing, searching for information, organising finances with online banking and reading the news, mean that retirees spend an average of six hours online every week.
The report reveals that far from being isolated at their PCs and losing touch with relatives, the internet-savvy elderly are embracing the web to enhance their social lives and keep in touch with family.
| Most popular internet activities of pensioners |
| E-mailing |
84% |
| Searching for information |
83% |
| Purchase travel tickets |
45% |
| Banking |
35% |
| Read the news |
28% |
Of those questioned, 66% regularly contact their children online with more than four in ten (42%) chatting to or emailing their grandchildren over the internet.
Travel tickets are the most popular item bought online with 45% of retirees surfing the net to book flight, cruise or coach tickets.
| Average number of hours per week spent by retired people online |
| USA |
9 hours |
| Australia |
7 hours |
| Canada |
7 hours |
| UK |
6 hours |
| New Zealand |
6 hours |
| France |
5 hours |
| Germany |
4 hours |
| Japan |
3 hours |
| Italy |
2 hours |
| Spain |
2 hours |
Alison Green, AXA, said: “It is encouraging to see British pensioners embracing technology. This report highlights how pensioners are using the internet to support a less stressful approach to life in their later years. The potentially arduous task of struggling with the shopping is becoming less of an issue as retirees can simply log onto their computers and select groceries at their leisure.
“Furthermore, the myth that spending hours at your PC is anti-social can be dispelled once and for all. Our study shows a large proportion of retired people go online to keep in contact with friends and relatives.”
Recent research from Nielsen//NetRatings showed that active home internet usage experienced its largest growth in Spain as 2006 drew to a close (see Home Internet Usage Increases).
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