SCT again falling behind on complaints workload

The pace at which the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal (SCT) is dealing with its workload appears once again to be an issue for superannuation funds, with the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) calling for increased funding for the body to assist it in meeting its obligations.

ASFA's pre-Budget submission, filed with the Treasury late last month, argues that the increased funding is needed because member funds are again expressing concern about the time being taken for complaints to be resolved.

The submission noted that the Tribunal had received an additional funding allocation in the May 2013 Budget, which allowed it to establish a ‘Special Projects Complaints Resolution Team' to address a specific backlog of unresolved complaints.

"While the SCT has reported good progress in addressing that specific backlog, it has noted that funding to support that team was for a two-year period (2013/2014 — 2014/2015) only," it said. "Notwithstanding the outcomes of this special project, ASFA members continue to raise with us their concerns regarding the time taken for the SCT to resolve complaints, which raises an obvious inference regarding the adequacy of the SCT's ongoing funding."

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The submission also pointed to ASFA's members also "reporting increased activity within some parts of the legal profession such that fund members are being actively encouraged to pursue litigation in respect of a benefit entitlement (particularly in relation to claims for insured disablement benefits) instead of following their fund's usual benefit claim and complaints process."

"Where a member engages legal representation and pursues a claim through the courts, the costs involved may in some cases represent a material portion of any benefit ultimately paid out," it said.

"In contrast, there is no charge to a member to take a complaint to the SCT."

The ASFA submission said one of the reasons cited by some legal practitioners and law societies for the increased trend toward litigation was the time taken for fund members to achieve a resolution of their complaint through the SCT.