As of June 30 this year, superannuation companies owed 7067 accounts across the area a combined $30 413 171.
That includes 4288 accounts in Shepparton who lost or failed to claim $18 821 826, and a further $5 398 737 across 1151 accounts across the 3631 postcode which covers Kialla, North Shepparton and Shepparton East.
And now is the time to check if some of it might be yours.
Financial planner Emma Kiss from Plus 1 Group said consolidating your superannuation — and retrieving any lost or unclaimed funds — is usually a pain-free process.
“If you want to do it yourself, you can use the your MyGov account to re-link any super that has gone astray,” she said.
“Alternatively, your tax agent can obtain a list of super funds that your name has been affiliated with; this can be a good starting point.”
Super funds are considered lost when account holders can't be contacted at their current address and have made no contributions or rollovers into the account for 12 months.
If your super is eligible to be withdrawn but the fund can’t contact the account holder, it becomes unclaimed.
But a new law passed at the start of July will work to protect superannuation savings, with super providers required to pay inactive low-balance accounts to the ATO.
There's also a proactive push to reunite unclaimed super cash with its rightful owner.
Miss Kiss said before consolidating superannuation funds, it was important to consider if you had any insurance within these funds, and if that insurance cover was required.
“The best thing to do is just make sure you are keeping an eye on your super and update your fund with any changes of address or name,” she said.
“Many of the big super funds now have apps you can download, which makes keeping on top of it really easy.”
For information on how to manage your super and view all your super accounts including lost and unclaimed super, visit ato.gov.au/checkyoursuper
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