This petition goes directly to the Parliament. All servicemen,servicewomen, their spouses widows/widowers, who contributed to the DFRDB scheme are affected by this anomaly, Even our partners will be paying this impost until they die if we predecease them.
This is an opportunity for you and your partner to have your say and help correct this anomaly. And if it doesn’t affect you then please help those who are affected by signing the petition
PLEASE SIGN & VERIFY THE PETITION NOW
THE PETITION
Defence Veterans of Australia, as Commutation recipients of the DFRDB Scheme administered by Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation, petition the House of Representatives to instate the National Life Expectancy data point of each affected veteran as the point where full reinstatement of their Commutation obligation is fulfilled: and, to reimburse to each DFRDB veteran, all over-subscribed payments forfeited by direct debit by them, once their original lump sum was repaid in full.
The DFRDB Authority failed to disclose to veterans the whole-of-life impost of a Lump Sum Commutation on superannuation payments reduced by a factor, based on redundant Notional Life Expectancy data and an individual’s Service data. Limited disclosure of the whole-of-life deductions was made by DFRDB, 37 years after the Scheme was launched, but never to members so affected.
Direct debit by DFRDB has been incremented and escalated over time, to a level where the original lump sum has been reimbursed multiple times. This effectively means that veterans are subsidising their own benefits.
There was no definition of the term ‘commutation’ within the legislation or in any document provided by DFRDB to superannuants, until its disclosure advised above. The direct debits were shown in the legislation and the DFRDB’s Administrative Manual to be a finite amount, not an escalating continuum .
On advice from DFRDB Administration all superannuants understood Commutation as an advance of Benefits to be reimbursed to DFRDB by fortnightly debits over a finite period and at a finite rate. How deluded Veterans were through DFRDB’s failure to disclose their interpretation of the Legislation, before the fact, thereby committing Veterans to an ever increasing, spiraling, life-term DEBT-SENTENCE.
Hi life means you get dfrdb for life that’s what we we signed up to.
I support this petition
I left in 82 after 23 years in army i was never told about dfrdb and the life expectancy found out from a mate told the 2 years would be paid at 72 still paying now this is a gov theft and it should be held responsible a total refund and interest when are they going to correct this theft we cannot go to the courts to get satisfaction and the cannot go on strike as we should
Meanwhile at DFRDB in BELLCONNEN ACT
Yes Minister . We are only taking the cream of the top of
their DFRDB pensions !
When I Joined the RAN in 1975 as a 15 year old Junior Recruit, I was told I had to join the DFRDB Scheme, was told that if I did 20 years I would get a pension for life, and I could take part of it as a lump sum, in my later years of service, and different things from the DFRDB Authority as it was then, but it was scrapped by government’s over time, they have played around with it, made new rules, etc. As there was a age based Schedule my thoughts were that once I had reached that age based number, the pension would revert to the full amount again. I discharged after 22 years, took the commutation, and reduced pension, but in 2001 I returned to service full time, to which I did a further 12 years, but this time I was Medically Discharged.
Invalidity Benefit class A, No requirement to pay back the commutation nor would I have a right to take second commutation,
I applied to DVA for incapacity for work payments under MRCA, and they are now reducing that payment (sorry offsetting my payment by the Invalidity Benefit that is fine, but they are also off setting the commutation amount from 97, (full amount) the offset amount is $53.86 per week. I was only paying 73 dollars a fortnight before.
I have a case awaiting a hearing at the AAT, so if any one else is having this done please contact me.
I enlisted in the RAAF 1952 and finally retired in 1974. I am now 85. Please pay me my legal entitlement . Posthumously is not an attractive proposition to me obviously, however, better late than never.
I retired in 1985 after 22 years of service. Like many others I was told the commutation debt would be paid back until I reached my notional life expectancy, which for me was around 69 years. Also, like many others, I can only rely on memory of what we were told at the time as the relevant papers have been lost over the ensuing 34 years. I only became aware of this petition when watching the 7.30 report 29/3. Blissfully unaware as the DFRDB hoped I would be!
,
I support this I started on DFRTB but swapped to MSBS at around six years in service. Only planes on doing 10 years so made sense to change. Sux we can’t roll it into my existing pension fund!
I support this petition
Why are we still being the victims of government sanctioned theft?
Not once was I informed that my commutation was for whole of life. It was always based on your notional life expectancy. However that’s a bit hard to prove now after being out of the ADF for over 20 years now specially after being through a divorce and the ex throwing everything out. Hoping for a good outcome through this though.
Whole of life means whole of life
Agree
I agree wholeheartly with the submission. In my case I joined the RAAF in 1963 and was discharged in 1983. I opted to comute 4 years pension. The repayments were calculated using final salary and life expectancy tables. I attended tne retirement seminas and it was NEVER stated that we would have to repay the calculated amount for the rest of my life. We were led to believe we had to repay the comuted amount, which is as it should be. I am now 78 and i was lead to believe the debt would have expired at 72. No so, as I am still paying a debt that ceased to exist 6 years ago and am required to keep paying until I die.
This unjust and morally currupt. In fact I would say its fraud
Please explain why the DFRDB superannuation system has not been investigated in the Banks and superannuation Royal Commission
In fact on top of the commutation debacle the losses have additionally been multiplied by the fact reduced commuted is modified by cost of living adjustments i.e. CPI. Since modified to CPI or average male weekly earnings which ever is the greatest
Retired in91 ,commuted , and discriminated against by those who didn’t . The life tables weren’t updated , not our fault . parliamentary pensions regularly updated obscenely so. Totally a lack of responsibility by polititions. If we did get an increase centerlink will grab it off us fsgt gb
I support this petition.
I support this petition after 20 years of service and leaving in 1981 I don’t recall any advice or documents in regards to commutation and associated repayments.
Not happy, like most was not given information on on paying back any commutation.
Appalling. I was not aware, until now, that the lump sum benefit was in fact a life sentence of debt. So, without full disclosure how could we be expected to make an informed decision. Beggars belief.
This situation should have been included in the Banks Royal Commission, so why wasn’t it?
I served from 1957 to 1978. On discharge we were informed that we had to wait until we collected our first pension, (usually took one month) and then we could commute four years lump sum. This was to assist us into civilian life, er buying a house etc. This reduced my pension by an amount that would see me repay the commuted amount when i reached my life expectancy date. From memory this date was my mid sixties. I am still paying it at age 79.
I fully support this petition
I strongly agree with this partition. I retired in 2000 after 28 Yrs of service. When will it end!
My hubby retired in 1993 and passed away in 2006 I receive 5/8 of his superannuation pension that he paid into for 20 years so not fair this needs fixing now
Like many others, commuted part of my Pension way back in 1985 and am still paying; 32 years later!
It is unfair that this will continue forever; my ‘loan’ has been ‘well & truly’ paid back!
Fix it now!
I support this petition
I retired in 1984 and like others wonder when this will end.
I strongly agree with this petition. I retired in 1983 after twenty years of service. We were told about commutation, be never told that the deductions would be for the life of the pension. To continue to take money out of a widows pension is beyond belief. I know this fight has been going on for years and has been resisted at all stages. Time to RIGHT THIS WRONG.