Heatwaves are jeopardising retirement as extreme weather events threaten investment returns, the pensions industry has warned.

Climate change is becoming a major risk for trillions of pounds in pension savings as increasingly unpredictable weather damages assets, disrupts supply chains and hits productivity, according to a report by the Society of Pension Professionals (SPP).

Calum Cooper, the president of the SPP, said: “Put simply, you can’t separate the future of pensions from the future of the economy. And you cannot separate the future of the economy from climate change.

“That means that climate risk is now retirement risk.”

The report comes after Friday broke the record for the hottest day in June for the third day in a row, with temperatures hitting 37.3C in Suffolk.

The intense heatwave brought travel chaos, the closure of hundreds of schools and imposed significant pressure on the healthcare system. Six NHS trusts were forced to declare critical incidents after being overwhelmed with patients.

Scientists have warned that extreme heat events will become more frequent and intense as the world’s climate changes.

Many economic and financial models may be underestimating the likelihood of repeated disruptions from adverse weather and resulting policy shocks, the SPP warned.

Mr Cooper added: “Climate change is no longer a future risk for pension schemes, it is a present-day financial reality.

“The decisions trustees, policymakers and investors make over the next decade will help determine not only the value of pension assets, but the retirement outcomes of millions of savers.”

While he was governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, who is now the Canadian prime minister, warned that climate change posed an existential threat to the global financial system.

Writing in The Guardian in 2019, Mr Carney called for banks, regulators and insurers to make monitoring climate-related financial risks part of their day-to-day supervisory work “to ensure financial firms are adequately addressing the financial risks from climate change”.

Sir Sadiq Khan unveiled London’s first “heat plan” this month to adapt to severe heatwaves. In 2022, extremely hot spells cost the capital an estimated £1.5bn in lost productivity, increased energy costs and transport and school closures.

The SPP report warned that extreme weather, heat stress and rising sea levels could damage assets and reduce productivity in the workforce. Climate pressures will also impact governments, insurers and infrastructure providers.

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