Are YOU owed $7,000 in unclaimed super? Shocking details emerge as the exact amount needed for comfortable retirement is revealed
- Australian Taxation Office revealed $13.8billion unclaimed in superannuation
- Sydney home to six of Australia's ten worst postcodes for lost retirement money
- In the city centre, workers were owed an average of $7,665 in lost super savings
Australians who live in Sydney are more likely to be owed unclaimed superannuation - with average lost savings of more than $7,000.
During the last financial year, $13.8billion worth of retirement savings had been misplaced, the Australian Taxation Office revealed on Thursday.
Younger workers doing a series of casual jobs were more likely to have lost super as new default accounts were opened on their behalf whenever they switched to new, insecure employment.
Those who had changed their name or address or forgotten to update their details in recent years were also more at risk of losing their super - a vital source of retirement income.
Australians who live in Sydney are more likely to be owed unclaimed superannuation - with average lost savings of more than $7,000. The 2000 postcode, taking in the city centre and harbour-view suburbs like The Rocks and Barangaroo, had $63.6million owed among 8,301 accounts - or an average of $7,665 per person
Sydney was the capital of unclaimed super, being home to six of the ten worst postcodes.
The 2000 postcode, taking in the city centre and harbour-view suburbs like The Rocks and Barangaroo, had $63.6million owed among 8,301 accounts - or an average of $7,665 per person.
The area also includes Haymarket near Chinatown, which is home to a larger proportion of international students.
A short bus ride away, Bondi was home to an unclaimed pool worth $38.5million, averaging out at $5,794 for every individual.
In nearby Darlinghurst and Surry Hills, average lost super stood at $6,071 - with $37.6million spread among 6,194 lost accounts.
On the other side of Sydney, in the outer south west, 11,259 workers in Casula and surrounding areas including Liverpool and Mount Pritchard, were owed $3,319 on average.
A short drive away, lost super balances in Campbelltown stood at $3,697.
Queensland had three spots on the top ten list of shame, with $3,675 on average owed in Cairns among 10,963 lost accounts.
By comparison, $4,479 on average was owed in Mackay and $3,778 in Toowoomba, on average.
Victoria took out one spot on this list, with $4,354 owed on average at Werribee in Melbourne's west among 7,690 accounts.
The $13.8billion in lost super as of June 30, 2020 was $7billion less than a year earlier.
Superannuation Minister Jane Hume said workers unsure about their unclaimed super could check with the tax office.
'There remains around $13.8 billion in unclaimed super, I encourage all Australians to take a moment to log in to the ATO via MyGov and check if it's yours- it only takes a moment,' she said.
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia recommended a single Australian have $535,000 tucked away to live in style during their old age while couples needed $640,000 for an equivalent lifestyle.
In nearby Darlinghurst and Surry Hills, average lost super stood at $6,071 - with $37.6million spread among 6,194 lost accounts
Many Australians are a long way from achieving that savings goal with official data showing average super balances of just $286,800 in the final decade before retirement.
Even by retirement, average superannuation rose to just $402,600 for those in the 65 to 74 age group, the Australian Bureau of Statistics household income and wealth data showed.
To have enough for a comfortable retirement, ASFA recommended an Australia have $219,000 by the age of 45.
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Those reaching 40 needed to have $164,000 in super while Australians aged 35 needed to aim for $112,000, itself a big jump from the $68,000 figure recommended for 30-year-old workers.
The trajectory needed to see a worker reach the $285,000 target by age 50, $360,000 by 55 and $449,000 by 60.
Since the advent of compulsory superannuation in 1992, growth-orientated balances had delivered average annual returns of 7 per cent, a SuperRatings analysis showed.
Victoria took out one spot on this list, with $4,354 owed on average at Werribee in Melbourne's west among 7,690 accounts
Super accounts are forecast to have shrunk by 5.9 per cent in the year to February, during a period covering the Covid shutdowns and the first recession in 29 years.
But this decline is still much less severe than the 12.7 per cent decline in 2008-09 during the Global Financial Crisis.
From July 1 this year, compulsory employer superannuation contributions are rising from 9.5 per cent to 10 per cent for adults who earn at least $450 a month.
They are rising to 12 per cent by July 2025 with incremental half a percentage point increases at the start of each financial year until then.
Queensland had three spots on the top ten list of shame, with $4,479 on average was owed in Mackay. Pictured is a farmers' market in north Queensland
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