ATO urges young workers to merge accounts

Almost half of young working Australians between 18 and 35 has more than one super account, Australian Taxation Office (ATO) figures have revealed. 

The ATO said 45 per cent of working Australians in this age group have more than one account, reflecting the fact that they are typically more disengaged with their superannuation. 

ATO assistant commissioner of superannuation John Shepherd said as young people are quite mobile in the workforce they tend to open new accounts instead of continuing with their existing ones. 

He also said many do not update contact details with their funds when they move houses and tend to lose track of super accounts that way. 

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"There are still $5.8 billion worth of accounts in this category," Shepherd said. 

The average fees charges paid by members for a low-cost super account is $532 per year, as per Australian Prudential and Regulation Authority figures. 

But Shepherd said more than 265,000 accounts totalling $1.13 billion were consolidated in the six months to December 2014, with 17 accounts consolidated in one case. 

"This is a rise of 400 per cent from the six months to December 2013 when 52,000 accounts worth more than $270 million were consolidated," he said. 

Members should use the myGov website to consolidate funds, with Shepherd pointing out the online process has been simplified.