SMSF member satisfaction sees significant decline
The satisfaction of SMSF members with financial performance has fallen to an eight-year low, according to a recent Roy Morgan report.
New data from Roy Morgan’s Superannuation Satisfaction Report indicates that overall satisfaction with the financial performance of super funds was 61.6 per cent in July. While this was down by 1.3 percentage points from the previous month, it is almost unchanged from last year when satisfaction was 61.7 per cent.
According to the research report, Industry Funds have been the standout over the last year and were the only sector to increase customer satisfaction, up by 0.2 of a percentage point to 63 per cent. Satisfaction with Public Sector Funds fell marginally, by 0.4 of a percentage point to 71.4 per cent but still retains the highest rating of any sector.
Customer satisfaction with Retail Funds declined by 2.5 percentage points to 54.9 per cent.
The biggest decline, however, was felt by SMSFs, with satisfaction levels dropping by 10.4 percentage points to 67.1 per cent.
“One year ago, people invested in SMSFs were the most satisfied, but now satisfaction with these funds is at its lowest for eight years since September 2012,” the report stated.
Roy Morgan chief executive Michele Levine said volatile sharemarkets during 2020 as well as the withdrawal of around $33 billion so far have placed immense pressure on Australia’s superannuation funds.
“The customer satisfaction with financial performance ratings of Australia’s super funds is reliant on the performance of the Australian sharemarkets, which dropped significantly in March but have since been stable for nearly four months,” Ms Levine said.
“The ASX 200 Index bottomed at 4,564 points on 24th of March, but by the end of May, it had rebounded by nearly 30 per cent to end the month of May at 5,851 and closed last week at 5,864.”
Ms Levine said the declining number of cases of COVID-19 in Victoria since peaking in early August is a big positive for the broader economic picture and suggests Australia can continue on the road to recovery in the months ahead, as the country emerges from the lockdowns and border closures that have stifled the economy.
Miranda Brownlee
Miranda Brownlee is the deputy editor of SMSF Adviser, which is the leading source of news, strategy and educational content for professionals working in the SMSF sector.
Since joining the team in 2014, Miranda has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest superannuation stories in Australia, and has reported extensively on technical strategy and legislative updates.
Miranda also has broad business and financial services reporting experience, having written for titles including Investor Daily, ifa and Accountants Daily.
