(REUTERS) - The Covid-19 pandemic is making Britons rethink their retirement and long-term savings plans, an added boon for money managers who are already benefiting from a record-setting recovery in financial markets. The death of a loved one, the need to squirrel away funds for emergencies and pandemic-influenced changes in life goals are motivating more people to have conversations about financial planning, British money managers said. "We have seen three characteristics emerge from this crisis - the early retirees, the retirement delayers and the newly motivated pension planners," said Ms Rosie Hooper, chartered financial planner at asset manager Quilter. "This pandemic has just accelerated things, whether out of necessity or desire." In the first few months of the pandemic last year, investors were hit hard by a collapse in financial markets. Massive government stimulus, however, has lifted sentiment since then. While some have used the money for big-ticket purchases like cars and homes, others are salting it away. A survey by the country's statistics office shows that one in eight workers aged 50 and over, or 13 per cent, said they had changed their retirement plans, with 5 p...