Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are being left “out in the cold” when trying to access their superannuation, consumer and Indigenous advocates say.
Rigid identification policies, culturally insensitive customer service and a push towards digital systems mean many First Nations people are locked out of their superannuation, according to a report from Super Consumers Australia and Mob Strong Debt Help.
Surveys of consumers in the Eastern Arnhem region and financial counsellors across Australia found more than half of Indigenous customers were unable to get through to their super fund, while 42 per cent did not understand the information they were given.
Super funds often use jargon or complex language or don’t have interpreters available, Mob Strong Debt Help senior solicitor Mark Holden said.
“Financial counsellors try to be able to help out with the client to understand and try to advocate with the super funds, but the super funds don’t accept their authority and leave both the financial counsellor and the client out in the cold,” the Dunghutti man told AAP.
People face similar barriers across remote, rural and urban communities, Mr Holden said, and the challenges are not unique to those customers surveyed.
The system’s rigidity also frustrates professionals working with communities, such as Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network financial counsellor Alex Price-Busch.
He has spent on the phone to super funds and the Australian Tax Office on behalf of clients who struggle to access their super.
“We see families fighting to claim death benefits while grieving. Many just give up because it’s too hard,” Mr Price-Busch said.
Super Consumers Australia chief executive Xavier O’Halloran said the impact on resources is huge for financial counsellors dealing with these issues.
“Some of the financial counsellors had told us they felt like they were working for the superannuation funds at times because they were spending hours on the phone dealing with really poor customer service processes … having to teach the frontline staff at super funds what their actual obligations were,” he said.
Super funds do not have mandatory customer service standards, and Mr Holden says many lack any cultural safety standards or are not implementing them.
This needs to change, says Mob Strong Debt Help, which also calls for better resourcing of financial counselling and legal support for First Nations people trying to access their superannuation.
The organisation also wants the Australian Tax Office and super funds to provide culturally safe support and help with identity checks.
“We need to see change now,” Mr Holden said.
“Any delay on this is going to further the intergenerational harm that our mob faces when it comes to superannuation.”
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