POWERED BY MOMENTUM MEDIA
Many retirement planning tools not accurate in life expectancy
Optimum Pensions has called on retirement professionals to check their life expectancy calculation methods are fit for purpose.
It said many retirement planning tools might not always reflect best practice when it came to determining and allowing for life expectancy.
“If the lens we view retirement through is inaccurate then incorrect conclusions will be drawn about retirement strategies and decisions. Retirees should not be paying the price,” it said.
Optimum Pensions noted many tools reflected outdated and inappropriate life expectancy statistics.
The firm said it had launched its new Lifespan Calculator which was based on the latest Australian Life Tables but also incorporated health data from a large reinsurer of longevity risk.
The tool did not show averages but results could be personalised by considering health and lifestyle factors. It also included both spouses in a couple and let each user focus on how confident they wished to be that their retirement planning timeframe could cover both their potential lifespans.
Optimum Pensions head of innovation, Jim Hennington, said: “This can add 10 years to the results that a less-accurate life expectancy calculator provides”.
Recommended for you
Superannuation funds will have two options for charging fees for the advice provided by the new class of adviser.
The proposed reforms have been described as a key step towards delivering better products and retirement experiences for members, with many noting financial advice remains the “urgent missing piece” of the puzzle.
APRA’s latest data has revealed that superannuation funds spent $1.3 billion on advice fees, with the vast majority sent to external financial advisers.
Cbus Super has unveiled Advice Essentials Plus, a new service offering affordable financial advice to both members and their partners.
TOP PERFORMING FUNDS
ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
1
Spire Oaktree Opportunities XI Second Close
61.07 3 y p.a(%)
2
Spire Oaktree Opportunities XI First Close USD
59.21 3 y p.a(%)
3
DomaCom Lot 21 Chellaston Road Munno Para West SA 5115 Australia
31.73 3 y p.a(%)
4
Fidante Credit Suisse Global Private Equity
30.15 3 y p.a(%)
5
DomaCom 4/27 Crombie Avenue Bundall QLD 4217 Australia
26.71 3 y p.a(%)
