Add up the potential saving
List every account and total the annual administration fees and insurance premiums in dollars. Estimate the investment fees using each balance and note whether any fund offers a fee cap or employer subsidy. The saving from consolidation is the cost that genuinely disappears, not the entire fee shown on one statement.
Also consider simplicity. One account is easier to monitor and can reduce lost-super risk. That benefit matters, but it should not override a valuable insurance policy or defined benefit.
List the benefits that may disappear
For each account, record insurance cover and terms, investment options, employer arrangements, advice access and whether the interest is accumulation or defined benefit. Ask whether a partial rollover is allowed and what minimum balance is needed to keep cover or membership open.
Insurance deserves its own decision. Old group cover may have no health exclusions that a replacement policy would impose. Compare insured amount, definition, premium, waiting period and benefit period, and never cancel before replacement is active if continued cover is important.
Make a decision you can explain
A sensible “yes” sounds like: the destination is at least as suitable, $X in duplicated annual cost will stop, and no valuable cover or benefit is lost. A sensible “not yet” may be that an insurance claim is in progress, underwriting is incomplete or an employer contribution is still on its way.
Document the reason and revisit it. Keeping two accounts can be deliberate rather than neglect, but check both yearly and tell beneficiaries or a trusted person they exist.
Quick reference
Key things to remember
- Add annual fees and insurance premiums for each account.
- Identify cover that depends on keeping an account open.
- Check tax or transfer restrictions for unusual interests.
- Compare the receiving fund before moving anything.
Put it into practice
Your next steps
- 01
Mark each account “keep”, “move” or “investigate”.
- 02
Ask each fund for written details of lost benefits.
- 03
Wait for replacement insurance approval where relevant.
- 04
Keep transfer confirmations and final statements.
Check the source
Official information
Super and tax rules change. These primary sources are the right place to verify the details before you act.