100 days waiting: TelstraSuper breached complaint resolution rules, court finds

TelstraSuper has been found to have left hundreds of members waiting too long for answers to their complaints. The Federal Court found the fund failed to meet mandatory dispute resolution rules after not responding to about one-third of relevant complaints within the required 45-day deadline between October 2021 and January 2023. In about 30 per cent of those delayed cases, members waited more than 100 days for a response. The court also found TelstraSuper failed in some cases to explain why complaints were taking longer to resolve and did not tell some members they could take their complaint to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority. TelstraSuper had previously blamed unavoidable staffing movements as one reason the complaints team couldn’t meet demand. Australian Securities and Investments Commission deputy chair Sarah Court said it was unacceptable that so many complaints had been mishandled, leaving members “in the dark”. “Financial service providers must invest in robust systems and devote adequate resources to ensure complaints are managed promptly and fairly,” Ms Court said. “This protects consumers from harm and underpins trust in the superannuation system.” The case is significant because it is ASIC’s first court action under internal dispute resolution rules introduced in October 2021. “Timeliness is central to effective complain management,” said Justice Penelope Neskovcin in the decision. TelstraSuper had 85,000 members and more than $27 billion under management before merging with Aware Super on April 30. Any penalty to be ordered by the court will be decided at a later date.