Customer service issues were prevalent, with 27% of claims suffering from poor communication, including unreturned calls and dismissed queries, further complicating the claims process for families.

The report revealed that trustees who outsourced claims processing completed only 15% of claims within 90 days, in stark contrast to the 35% completion rate achieved by in-house processing.

To address these issues, ASIC has made several recommendations, including improving customer service, monitoring claims performance, streamlining processes, enhancing staff training, and ensuring clearer communication with members.

In response to the ASIC report, both Brighter Super and Rest have acknowledged their shortcomings and claim to have made improvements in their claims handling processes since the data collection in 2024.

A troubling case study highlighted a widow who faced nearly a year of delays in claiming her late husband's $600,000 benefit, despite having a binding nomination, illustrating the distress caused by these systemic issues.

ASIC chair Joe Longo emphasized the industry's disconnect from customer needs, attributing the suffering of customers to leadership failures in data management.

Currently, ASIC is pursuing legal action against Cbus and AustralianSuper for their inefficient, unfair, and dishonest management of claims.

The report highlighted that there were 8.8 complaints per 1,000 deaths, with some funds exhibiting much higher rates, raising particular concerns for Indigenous Australians.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has uncovered systemic failures within superannuation funds regarding the handling of death benefit claims, which have resulted in significant delays and inadequate support for grieving families.

Commissioner Simone Constant stressed that grieving Australians should not endure additional stress due to the inefficiencies of trustees in handling claims respectfully and promptly.

ASIC noted that a staggering 80% of delays in claims processing were within the control of the trustees, despite many attempting to shift blame to third-party administrators.

An analysis of ten major trustees, covering 38% of the superannuation market, found that none tracked the end-to-end processing times for claims, indicating a significant oversight in claims management.