Why these are the four biggest barriers to a secure retirement

New research from the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) this week shows that just 51 per cent of adult Australians – including around 60 per cent of those over 65 – have not sought out any information on preparing for retirement. It’s a number that makes me a bit mad.

According to the ASFA survey, 21 per cent of people have accessed financial advice; another 21 per cent got their information from friends and family; 15 per cent used online calculators; and 12 per cent sought advice from their super fund. Only 8 per cent turned to media articles, and a mere 6 per cent found advice via social media.

Let’s unpack this problem. Because to fix it, we need to solve a few different issues.

Want to get on the green? Retirement planning is crucialCredit: Dominic Lorrimer

First, we need to help people better understand and engage with what their future retirement could look like so that they’re motivated to seek out advice. Then, we must ensure that the advice they’re getting is both affordable and trustworthy – and truly in their best interest.

So, the way I see it, there are four big problems to tackle:

1. Engagement – getting people interested in planning for retirement. Most people don’t really start thinking about how much money they’ll need in retirement until it’s right around the corner.

And let’s face it, retirement can be a polarising topic. Some people can’t wait to retire – they see how it fits into their life from their late forties or early fifties and are already planning everything possible to get there faster. These folks actively seek out the information they need. They’re the easy ones to help with education and advice.

Trust is one of the biggest barriers when it comes to seeking financial advice or education.

Others never want to retire, especially those who find deep fulfilment in their work. The thing is, no one tells them they can keep working and still access part of their retirement savings to enjoy a more flexible lifestyle while continuing the work they love.

Then there’s the third group — the ones who believe they’ll never have enough saved for a comfortable retirement. The fear of seeing their financial reality drives them to avoid superannuation statements, planning, and even the thought of retirement altogether.

But imagine if we could strip away that fear, show them that the system is designed to help them, and explain that understanding their retirement options earlier is actually empowering.

2. Affordable, trustworthy advice. The average financial adviser manages around 100 clients, and we currently have about 15,600 independent advisers in Australia. Yet, advisers are still leaving the industry, meaning around 1,156,000 people can get retirement advice from an independent adviser right now.

Most advisers prefer ongoing clients, and they charge between $4000 and $12,000 per year, on average. That kind of cost puts independent advice out of reach for most Australians with super balances in the $200,000 to $300,000 range.

The industry knows it needs to address this, but there’s simply not enough capacity to provide affordable advice to the average Australian unless they introduce more cost-effective, one-off services.

Super funds could be the ones to step in here and provide advice for their members, but there’s an inherent conflict of interest when they’re also selling retirement income products. And the last time that happened, it didn’t go well.

But there’s no one else with their hand up offering to solve the problem – and it’s a problem that needs to be solved quickly because 710,000 plan to retire in the next 5 years and nowhere near enough of them can access advice.

3. Education and literacy – empowering pre-retirees with the right tools. Too many Australians enter their pre-retirement years with only a vague understanding of how their superannuation works or what their retirement strategy should be.

This lack of knowledge can lead to fear and avoidance, as people feel overwhelmed by the complexity of financial and life planning. What we need is high-quality, trustworthy education that helps people feel confident and in control of their future.

The focus shouldn’t just be on generic financial literacy, but on practical, tailored education that speaks directly to pre-retirees navigating retirement in today’s world – where people don’t all look the same.

People need to clearly understand the options available to them – from managing their super, to how much they’ll need in retirement, to strategies that allow them to maximise their savings. It’s about providing actionable insights that demystify the process and reduce the fear that often comes from uncertainty.

What’s critical here is that this education comes from sources that people trust. Super funds, financial institutions, and independent advisers all have a role to play in delivering transparent, unbiased information that empowers Australians to make informed choices.

The goal is to replace fear with clarity, and confusion with a solid understanding of how they can put together a retirement strategy and live in comfort through what could be the best years of their life.

4. Trust – building confidence in the system. Trust is one of the biggest barriers when it comes to seeking financial advice or education in my opinion.

Too many people still remember the scandals of the past, where people were led astray by dodgy advisers or conflicted institutions.

While regulatory changes have improved the landscape, there’s still a lingering and possibly necessary distrust in the system and fear of advice and education provided by them. People assume companies are acting in their own commercial self-interest. And why wouldn’t they.

For people to feel comfortable accessing advice, transparency is crucial – they need to see that their best interests come first. Whether that advice comes from an independent adviser, a super fund, or even an online platform, Australians need to trust that the guidance they’re getting is unbiased and reliable.

It’s not enough for advice to feel like a sales funnel driving them toward the institution’s own retirement products just to keep funds under management.

I’m not sure we’ve cracked the code on how to do this yet, I truly hope we can – because people deserve education and advice they can genuinely trust.

Bec Wilson is the author of bestseller How to Have an Epic Retirement. She writes a weekly newsletter at epicretirement.net and is the host of the Prime Time podcast.

• Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making financial decisions.

Expert tips on how to save, invest and make the most of your money delivered to your inbox every Sunday. Sign up for our Real Money newsletter.