Two in three Australians want to see the federal government implement changes to make financial advice more accessible to everyone, research has shown.
Commissioned by Colonial First State, the 2025 CFS Empowered Australian Report surveyed 2250 Australians and found eight in 10 Australians – 82 per cent – believe financial advice should be accessible to everyone.
The findings showed 67 per cent of women and 71 per cent of Australians aged 40 to 49 are the most eager to see reforms from the government to improve access to advice.
It was also reported that advice was considered too expensive for 36 per cent of unadvised Australians. However, the other two-thirds said they did not use an adviser because they are unable to assess the value of advice or are uncertain about how to access advice.
Seven in 10 Australians believe advice should be priced according to their needs, from simple to complex.
Superannuation was the number one topic Australians wanted advice on, yet 92 per cent of those who had never received advice have little to no knowledge about using their super to pay for advice, indicating a lack of awareness among potential consumers.
Super Consumers Australia chief executive Xavier O’Halloran told Professional Planner super funds need to be more careful about how they undertake consumer research.
“CFS appear to be confusing causation and correlation,” O’Halloran said after the report was made public on Monday.
“There is plenty of research pointing to the causal link between high levels of wealth and positive social, mental, financial and health outcomes.
“Claiming that financial advice is the cause for all of these outcomes, without controlling for the impact of wealth, is a stretch. It ignores the fact that there are typically higher rates of financial advice take-up among wealthier people.”
However, CFS said in a statement* the results show that on a like for like basis, controlling for wealth level, those who receive advice are virtually always better off than those who don’t.
“Irrespective of wealth level, advised Australians are less likely to say their financial situation has negatively impacted their lifestyle choices and physical and mental wellbeing, are more confident and better prepared to cope with a loss of income than those who do not receive advice,” the statement said.
Other findings in the report called for super funds to act on advice, with one in two Australians wanting their super fund to help them find an adviser in their area.
The cost of living was a top concern for three-quarters of those surveyed, with over half more concerned than they were a year ago.
Additionally, more than one in five men and more than one in three women reported their financial situation had negatively affected their mental health.
Mulino’s move
The advice industry is still eagerly waiting to see what incoming Minister for Financial Services Daniel Mulino will do first after he replaced Stephen Jones in the portfolio, following Labor’s landslide federal election win last month.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his cabinet on 12 May, the Member for Fraser was appointed as Incoming Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services.
Before the Federal Election was called, Jones released the first draft legislation for the second tranche of the Delivering Better Financial Outcomes reforms, but the election was called before the draft bill could progress.
Advisers have since urged Mulino to pick up the pace of reform and continue Jones’ work on the DBFO.
Mulino is expected to prioritise completing the reforms and continue to cut red tape and support the profession.
However, the commitment of both sides of politics to reforming financial advice laws is up in the air, with the minister yet to make public comments on the matter. Meanwhile, the Opposition is reviewing its policies around financial advice, following the appointment of Pat Conaghan as the new Shadow Minister for Financial Services by Opposition Leader Sussan Ley.
Conaghan has expressed he intends to work with industry bodies to reassess the Coalition’s approach to financial advice reform.
Before the election, the Coalition pledged to introduce a financial services bill including advice reforms within 100 days were they to win.
Labor did not make a specific time commitment, but Jones promised his colleagues would be as committed to reforming advice as himself in an effort to alleviate industry concerns.
CFS Superannuation CEO Kelly Power said there is now an opportunity to complete the DBFO reforms to make it easier for advisers to provide more advice to more Australians with the new government settled.
“We should not lose sight of the fact millions of Australians will be approaching retirement over the coming decade and the current framework will mean too many are unable to access the help they will need,” Power said in a media release accompanying the report.
*Editor’s note: this article was updated on 3 June with an additional statement from CFS.
The headline of this story is misleading. Two in three Australians may WANT the government to implement reforms, but none are urging them to do so. Pity, because if they were, the government might actually be moved to action.