Advisers’ limited role in KiwiSaver revealed
Less than one quarter of KiwiSaver members sought financial advice, yet of the 18% of people who have switched schemes, 12% did so after a recommendation from a financial adviser.
Thursday, August 18th 2011, 6:53AM 
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These are among the findings of research conducted for the Institute of Financial Advisers (IFA) and the Financial Services Institute of Australasia (Finsia) as part of Financial Awareness Week.
The report makes clear New Zealanders value the scheme, with 57% of respondents believing KiwiSaver should be compulsory.
However, it makes worrying reading for advisers with regard to their role.
“There appears to be a general reluctance to make use of financial advisers, with the advice of family and friends often preferred,” said the report.
“Few New Zealanders have joined KiwiSaver or made changes to their KiwiSaver account on the basis of a financial adviser.”
However, the report highlighted the fact advisers appeared to play a more prominent role among those switching schemes.
Of the 18% who have switched since joining the scheme, “The main reason given for changing KiwiSaver provider, from the list provided, was to get higher returns (14%) followed by making a change because the member’s financial adviser recommended it (12%).”
The lack of a wide spread engagement with advisers is also highlighted in some of the survey’s findings around the type of funds held.
“A relatively large proportion of KiwiSaver members do not know what kind of fund they are in, which raises the question of how they can know whether the fund type is appropriate for their needs and risk tolerance level.
“Less than one quarter of KiwiSaver members obtained financial advice to help them choose the most appropriate find for their needs.”
One quarter of respondents were unable to identify what type of fund they were in, and “many were unable to estimate the proportion of their retirement savings represented by their KiwiSaver account.”
The fact that nearly a quarter of respondents are in the six, more conservative, default funds was an issue highlighted by IFA chief Peter Lee.
“While this could be fine for some people, it’s likely many will be in the wrong fund and missing out on a bigger pool of money in retirement,” he said.
“This means many aren’t making the right decisions, or getting good advice on what to do.”
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Comments from our readers
Should not all self interest be on the table, regardless of what form it comes in!
My own experience with ASB at the front counter was Q: How are the funds doing compared with others A: Well everyone is picking this fund or that one - and we nearly have 1 million KiwiSavers!
Reply for John: as an RFA I am quite happy to disclose how much commission I get and was doing so up to 1 July! Under the new regime I am not required to - perhaps because I don't charge a fee to my clients as well as take the commission.
Reply for Smith: QFE advisers don't tell us their salary/wages though in my experience recently.
Just want to see if my perception of an unlevel playing field is correct.
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We can only hope that when the individual KiwiSaver's funds get over $25k they will seriously start looking at their options - with an adviser that knows about more than one provider's funds.