Consumers should seek out intra-fund advice: SuperRatings

SuperRatings executive director Kirby Rappell said consumers did not need to “go it alone” when working out how best to structure their retirement assets for the current market circumstances, as they could access the advice provided by their super fund.

“Most funds will offer scaled advice for free or at a low cost, with members able to get advice on topics such as contributions, investment options, insurance in the fund and the transition to retirement,” Mr Rappell said.

“For members who want more tailored advice, some funds will offer comprehensive advice that will also take into account your financial assets outside of superannuation.”

With new restrictions in place around the deduction of advice fees from super accounts, Mr Rappell added that consumers should “check any costs and how they can be paid before agreeing to get the advice”.

The comments came as SuperRatings data revealed that fund members with a balance of $100,000 who had switched to cash at the start of COVID-related volatility in March last year would now be $22,000-27,000 worse off than if they had remained in a balanced or growth option.

The statistics also revealed that an average $100,000 balance invested in a growth option over the last 15 years would have generated a current balance of $254,006, and a current balance of $247,557 when invested in a balanced option.

Both average balanced and growth options had returned 1.3 per cent in July alone, according to SuperRatings data.