Third-party authorities with Mercer Super Trust

Form details

'Third party authority form', version 12/2023 (form code 254444-08122023), at https://www.mercersuper.com.au/content/dam/mercer-super/australia/documents/internal/MST_Third-Party-Authority-form.pdf. Information/monitoring access ONLY — the member declaration states the authority does not allow the representative to change details or transact. Member must supply account/membership number, plan/product name, employer name, DOB, address. Adviser section (Step 2) has MANDATORY fields: authorised representative full name, email, ASIC Financial Adviser number, and adviser signature; plus AFSL/licensee details and an AFSL-holder declaration. Optional checkbox to authorise 'all staff of the company' — if unticked, only named individuals can enquire. Member signature required (Step 3). Form 'can be completed digitally or by hand' — digital completion accepted; no ID certification requirement stated. VALIDITY: member ticks 12 months or 24 months; if nothing selected the TPA lapses within 24 months of signature — 24 months is the hard maximum. Withdrawal in writing, effective by the 5th business day after receipt.

Where and how to lodge

Email a scanned copy to MST@mercer.com (the channel Mercer's own adviser page promotes for TPA and Advice Fee forms — fastest in practice), or post to Mercer Super Trust, GPO Box 4303, Melbourne VIC 3001 (Step 2 of the form prints 'Melbourne VIC 3000'; the footer and adviser page say 3001). No fax and no portal upload for TPAs. Note: personal-detail-change forms require wet signatures and are mail-only, but the TPA itself may be emailed.

Published turnaround

Published on the adviser support page: five business days after submitting the TPA form you can call 1800 682 525 to obtain client account information (i.e. ~5-business-day TPA processing standard). Advice fee deductions reach the licensee within 4–6 weeks of acceptance. No broader published SLA for information requests.

Watch-outs

(1) 12/24-month TPA expiry is the tightest of the major funds — authorities silently lapse at 24 months max, so re-papering is routine; SuperChase should track expiry from signature date. (2) ASIC Financial Adviser number and adviser signature are mandatory — omissions are rejection fodder; the 'all staff' box left unticked blocks paraplanners/CSOs from calling. (3) Members in employer plans need the plan/product name on the form. (4) Service reputation is poor: ProductReview reports members bounced between departments, hours on hold, and needing AFCA to force responses. (5) Regulatory context supports firm escalation: APRA imposed additional licence conditions on Mercer Super (2023), and in June 2025 ASIC sued Mercer Super in the Federal Court (25-166MR) alleging systemic failure to report member-services investigations (reportable situations regime, Oct 2021–Sep 2024). (6) Quirk in the form: the member declaration says no transactions are permitted, yet the adviser declaration contains an indemnity referencing 'withdrawal instructions' — funds-side staff sometimes interpret scope inconsistently.

If they go quiet

Email MSALCustomer.Complaints@mercer.com; phone 1800 682 525; or write to Complaints Officer, Mercer Super Trust, GPO Box 4303, Melbourne VIC 3001. No dedicated online complaint form. Commitment: acknowledgement generally by next working day; internal target resolution within 5 business days; statutory maximum 45 calendar days (90 days for death benefit distribution complaints). Escalation: AFCA — 1800 931 678, info@afca.org.au, GPO Box 3 Melbourne VIC 3001.

Under s1017C of the Corporations Act, a trustee must make reasonable efforts to comply with an information request within one month. If Mercer Super Trust exceeds its own published standard, a formal internal-dispute-resolution complaint starts a 45-calendar-day clock under ASIC Regulatory Guide 271 — with AFCA as the next stop.