Almost half (44%) said they will avoid thinking about care costs until either they or a family member falls ill, according to the research from Canada Life.

The lack of planning is despite the fact that requests for later life care are on the rise.

In the 2019/20 tax year 1.9m people requested care support from their council, an increase of over 100,000 since 2015/16.

A quarter (28%) said they have put off thinking about care due to it being an emotionally overwhelming subject.

Another quarter (25%) said they have put off thinking about care costs due to the financial anxiety surrounding it.

One in ten (8%) said they do not think it is their responsibility to think about funding their care needs, believing the State or a family member should pay.

Alice Watson, head of marketing, insurance, at Canada Life, said: “While we often don’t like to think about the worst that could happen, with people living longer and retirement lasting several decades, planning for later life care is a reality for many of us. Add to this the increase in social care needs across the country, it’s worrying to see how few people have planned for later life care and why they are delaying thinking about it, whether that be financial or emotional barriers.

“Looking ahead, we must continue to encourage people to think about their needs at different stages of retirement, no matter how difficult this may be.”

Among those who had started planning for later life care, 49% had discussed the subject with family members while 27% had actively started saving to pay for it.

Over one in ten (14%) over-60s had actively started budgeting for later life care and 11% had finalised their care plans.

• Opinium surveyed 2,000 UK adults on behalf of Canada Life between 20 and 24 May.