Commonwealth Numbered Regulations - Explanatory Statements

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SUPERANNUATION (RESOLUTION OF COMPLAINTS) REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT) 1995 NO. 318

STATUTORY RULES 1995 No. 318

Issued by the authority of the Treasurer

Superannuation, (Resolution of Complaints) Act 1993

Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Regulations (Amendment)

The Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Act 1993 (the Act) established, with p effect from 1 July 1994, the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal. The Tribunal has the objectives of providing a fair, economical, informal and quick mechanism for:

•       the conciliation of complaints made by members of regulated superannuation and approved deposit funds; and

•       if conciliation is not successful at resolving the complaint - the review of the fund trustee decisions to which the complaint relates.

Section 68 of the Act provides that the Governor-General may make Regulations for the purposes of the Act.

In summary, these regulations provide that disability complaints where:

•       more than one year has elapsed since the trustee's decision to which the complaint relates; or

•       the person making the complaint failed to lodge a claim for a disability benefit with the trustees within one year of permanently ceasing employment due to disability;

will be classified as excluded complaints and therefore may not be made to the Tribunal.

The regulations are described in detail in the attachment.

The regulations will commence on 1 November 1995.

ATTACHMENT

Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Regulations (Amendment)

BACKGROUND

The Superannuation Complaints Tribunal cannot deal with a complaint to the extent that it relates to excluded subject matter, or if the complaint is an 'excluded complaint' under the Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Regulations (the Principal Regulations).

The existing regulation 4 of the Principal Regulations effectively prescribes 'medical evidence' as excluded subject matter, however this regulation ceases to have effect on 31 October 1995 and accordingly the Tribunal will be required to deal with medical evidence complaints from 1 November 1995. At the moment there are no 'excluded complaints' prescribed in the Principal Regulations.

The purpose of these regulations is to ensure that the Tribunal does not get bogged down in dealing with 'old' disability complaints (where the trail of medical evidence has gone cold) and to ensure that the Tribunal's new jurisdiction over 'medical evidence' complaints is as 'prospective' as possible (the Government first announced that the Tribunal would deal with such complaints in October 1994).

Regulation 1 - Commencement

The regulations will commence on 1 November 1995.

Regulation 2 - Amendment

Regulation 2 provides that the Superannuation (Resolution of Complaints) Regulations (the Principal Regulations) are amended as set out in these Regulations.

Regulation 3 - Regulation 3 (Interpretation)

Regulation 3 inserts a definition of disability benefit into the Principal Regulations. Under this definition, a disability benefit is one that is paid in the event of temporary or permanent ceasing of employment because of a partial or total disability, and which is provided as an ancillary purpose of the fund.

Regulation 4 - Regulation 4 (Excluded complaints)

Regulation 4 deletes the existing Principal Regulation 4 and inserts a new Principal Regulation 4. The new subregulation 4(1) provides that:

•       the Tribunal can only deal with complaints about trustee decisions relating to the payment of disability benefits if the trustee decision to which the complaint relates was made on or after 1 November 1994 and the complaint is made within a year of the trustee decision; and

•       persons can only access the Tribunal with disability complaints if the original claim for disability benefit to which the complaint relates was lodged with the trustees within a year of the permanent cessation of employment due to disability. The reference to permanent cessation of employment is intended to ensure that time will not begin to run against persons who are on extended sick leave and, or, in receipt of some kind of salary continuance benefit and who retain a right to resume employment until they have permanently ceased employment.

New subregulation 4(2) ensures that the decision of the trustee referred to in new subregulation 4(1) is taken to be the original decision which rejected the claim, either in whole or in part, and not a subsequent reconsideration of that decision under any internal review mechanisms established by the fund (enabling the 12 month time period to run from the date of a decision on reconsideration of the original decision would defeat the object of the time limit).

New subregulation 4(3) provides that if a complaint is made about an original decision of a trustee under arrangements made under section 101 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993, and the original decision is confirmed, varied or another decision was substituted for the original decision, the confirmed, varied or substituted decision is taken to be have been made at the time the original decision was made.