<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>336647</docID> <postdate>2025-01-20 09:14:05</postdate> <headline>Lifetime pensions urged to make super system easier</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-336648" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/20170430001304523171-original-resized.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>Many retirees' super balances are still unspent when they reach the average life expectancy. (Paul Miller/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Andrew Brown</strong> in Canberra</span></p> <p><strong>Retirees should be offered a lifetime pension from the federal government, drawn from their savings, in order to make the superannuation system simpler, a report has urged.</strong></p> <p>The Grattan Institute report on superannuation has recommended retirees use a portion of their super balance to buy an annuity from the government to guarantee their income for the rest of their lives.</p> <p>Under the proposal, 80 per cent of super balances above $250,000 should be used to purchase the annuity, with the report suggesting incomes of retirees could be boosted by as much as 25 per cent.</p> <p>Grattan Institute director Brendan Coates, who wrote the report, said few retirees were using their retirement savings as intended, with super balances growing for decades after people stop working.</p> <p>"This is turning Australia's multi-trillion-dollar compulsory superannuation system into a massive inheritance scheme," he said.</p> <p>"This is not how it was meant to be. Too few retirees are enjoying the benefits of the savings they built up during their working lives."</p> <p>The report said under the current system, 65 per cent of super balances remained unspent by the time retirees reached the average life expectancy.</p> <p>The plan for government annuities to be bought using super funds was one of seven recommendations the institute put forward.</p> <p>Other recommendations included calls for the federal government to set up a free service for retirees to plan their retirement incomes.</p> <p>The report also urged for a top-10 list of the best super funds to be created, with retirees to be steered towards using those for their retirement funds.</p> <p>It's estimated more than 80 per cent of retirees use account-based pensions in their super funds, meaning people often have to manage spending to avoid outliving their savings.</p> <p>"The Grattan Institute blueprint for better old age in Australia would let retirees stress less, spend more, and truly enjoy their retirement years," Mr Coates said.</p> </body>