Industry funds take super campaign to bookshelves

The Industry Super Funds network largely responsible for financing the ‘compare the pair’ television advertising campaign has now backed the printing of a handbook on superannuation to be distributed through newsagents throughout Australia from the beginning of July.

The book, The 50 crucial answers you need to know, deals with a range of superannuation-related issues including the question of fees and advice and suggests that “fees charged by superannuation funds are a drain on your contributions” while pointing out that different funds have varying fee structures from very low to high.

It also deals with the issues to consider when looking for a financial planner, including how much the advice will cost and whether the planners “get paid by commissions, or other financial benefits for recommending products or super funds”.

The book then looks at how much people can expect to pay for advice and suggests that a ‘true fee-for-service’ planner will cost between $2,000 and $3,000 for initial advice and implementation, while using a commission-based adviser would cost between $1,000 and $3,000 as a plan fee and between 1 and 4 per cent of sums invested as implementation or initial commission.