Separation or divorce

The law allows the following people to ask for information about a member’s benefits in a super fund:

1. The member
2. The member’s spouse
3. A person who intends to enter into a superannuation agreement with the member.

To obtain information you must complete an Application for Information and a Declaration which are available on the Family Court website.

For an Application for Information received from someone other than the member of ElectricSuper, the Trustee cannot tell the member that the Application has been received.

All documents relating to Family Law matters should be sent by email to electricsuper@mercer.com or mail to:

The Administrator
ElectricSuper
GPO Box 4303
MELBOURNE    VIC 3001

The Trustee is not permitted to provide you with any advice in relation to Family Law matters. It is recommended that you seek legal advice for your specific circumstances from an appropriately qualified person. It may also be in your best interests to speak to a licensed financial adviser about the impact of the changes to the Family Law Act in your particular circumstances.

A copy of the Court Order should be provided to the Trustee along with any other required documents (your legal adviser will tell you what needs to be done).

If it is a Flagging Order, the recipient spouse must provide details of their full name and postal address to the Trustee.

If it is a Splitting Order, the recipient spouse must provide the Trustee with details of their date of birth and, if the recipient spouse is also a member of ElectricSuper, their membership number in ElectricSuper.

In the case of a Flagging Order, the decision on how to split the benefit is deferred until a later date. If the member becomes entitled to a super benefit from ElectricSuper while a flag is in place, the benefit cannot be paid, and the Trustee must notify the parties, or the Court. The Trustee must then wait for further instructions from the parties or the Court before paying the benefit to the member.

In the case of a Splitting Order where a payment is made to a recipient spouse, the Trustee will check to confirm that the Court’s instructions can be followed within ElectricSuper Rules. Once this has been confirmed, the Trustee will instruct ElectricSuper’s administrator to pay the appropriate amount to the recipient spouse.

For Division 2, 3 or 4 members, the amount paid to the recipient spouse is noted on the member’s ElectricSuper record as a debt and the amount of this debt will continue to accrue with interest (currently at AWOTE + 2.5% pa). This debt is shown on your annual statement as a Family Law Offset Account or FLOA. When you become entitled to receive a super benefit from ElectricSuper, the FLOA account would be applied against your super benefit.

The FLOA will continue to be shown as a debt against your benefit until you are entitled to a super benefit from ElectricSuper.  The debt cannot be extinguished prior to this time.

For Accumulation Scheme members, the amount paid to a recipient spouse is shown as an immediate deduction against your account balances at the date of payment.

As your circumstances change, you may wish to review who you want to receive your super balance and relevant benefits if something happens to you. You can’t always know what’s around the corner, but you can prepare for the future by nominating beneficiaries today.

If your level of debt or expenses changes, you may want to review your insurance options to make sure you have the right level of cover. If something happens to you and you are unable to work, would your insurance cover be enough to pay your expenses?