The word pension never seems to be far from the headlines at the minute. Pensions were obviously the cause of the recent industrial action at the end of 2011 whilst pensions were also at the heart of George Osborne autumn statement last year as the news that the rise in the state pension age to 67 was to be brought forward to 2026 from 2034.

Indeed the days of your pension maintaining a particular type of lifestyle when you retire are well and truly over. It has come to be accepted that retirement brings frugality. Most pensioners are struggling to make ends meet today simply because the inflation in the economy is so high that monthly pension payments cannot keep up with the higher prices of basic goods and services. This is something that the public sector strikers are passionate about. If you consider that if you start work at 16 and retire at 65 then you will have a career lasting 49 years.

Inflation will change a huge amount over that time. According to the AA Motoring Trust a litre of petrol in 1983 was 34p per litre. Today a litre of petrol will set you back 1.32p. Inflation shows no sign of stopping but there is a way around it which could see you not only effectively buy back those extra two years of your retirement but also see you live your retirement years in extra comfort. Precious metals retain their value in spite of inflation. In fact the value of precious metals is often at its highest during a struggling economy. For example if you had 1 oz of gold (value of $35) in 1970 you could have purchased a tailor made suit.