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Who can make a death benefit claim?
When a someone dies, their superannuation fund must pay the deceased’s death benefit, including an insured lump sum, to the appropriate person. You could have a claim for payment if you are:
- A beneficiary nominated by the super fund member
- Were dependent on the deceased, such as a child
- Were dependent of the deceased, such as a spouse
- Were otherwise in a close personal relationship
Terminal illness claim
It is also possible for the person who holds the superannuation account to claim the benefit themselves, if they have been diagnosed as terminally ill with a prognosis of 24 months or less.
Most superannuation funds will have death benefit insurance attached the accounts by default. This insurance is available to relieve financial hardship in already troublesome times.
Time limits for making a death benefit claim
When dealing with these matters, it's best to claim as soon as possible. Some super funds have binding nominations, which means the account holder can nominate someone directly.
If there is no nominee, or a non-binding nomination, the person managing the super fund (known as the trustee) may decide who the dependents are, divide up the super or give it to the deceased estate.
For terminal illness, the claim timeframes are similar to TPD claims.
Seeking expert legal advice from death benefit lawyers as soon as possible following your injury or illness is the best way to ensure your claim is successful.
Our team at Maurice Blackburn includes both experienced superannuation death benefit lawyers and will disputes lawyers, to help you understand all of the options available to you and your loved ones. Contact our expert lawyers today.
Compensation and benefits
The payout for death benefits usually includes the money from the superannuation fund, and the payout from the insurance policy attached to the super fund, so can vary significantly depending on how long the person has been contributing to the fund.
If you're a dependent of the person who has died, you may be able to choose the death benefit to be paid as either a lump sum or an income stream. If you are not a dependent, it will be paid as a lump sum.
Find out if you have a claim with our free claim check
Start your free claim check now
No win, no fee* death benefit claims
Our 'no win, no fee*' policy means that if we don't win, you don't have to pay our legal fees.
Process for making a death benefit claim
Contact us as soon as you think you have a superannuation death benefits claim. We'll work to confirm what you're entitled to so we can give you the best advice for your potential claim.
We'll keep you informed throughout the whole process and provide you with expert advice that is easy to understand.
01
We will help you with all the documentation you need from your super fund or insurer.
02
We'll complete all the legal paperwork and submit your claim.
03
Your death benefit claim is assessed and your insurer makes a decision.

'It was very frustrating time and I just didn't know where to turn. So, to go to Maurice Blackburn, and say, ‘you do it’. It was fantastic.'
Robert's story
Superannuation - TPD claims

Robert's story - Superannuation claims
I loved being a carpenter. Artsy, built houses for people. I loved working, love working, swinging the hammer. I loved doing it, loved it. I started dropping tools, thought what's wrong with me.
Noticed that Robbie was dropping things, slurring his speech, just a little bit wobbly on his legs.
After that, me sentences were so, so weird and changed. Wow, what's wrong what's with me? What's wrong, what's wrong, dammit?
Got him to a neurologist and found out that he had MS and he’d had a major attack. And so our journey began.
It was a shock. We didn't know what MS was.
You've got MS mate, you've got MS. Wow, really? MS? Wow. How long is that? Do I have to take aspirins? No mate, no aspirins. MS is a mysterious disease. Sorry, there’s nothing. No cure for it.
Robbie had three superannuations. I had spent nearly two years contacting all these superannuation funds. Not one of them mentioned that attached to his superannuation there was a TPD, so it was very, very frustrating time. I just didn't know where to turn. So, to go to Maurice Blackburn, and dump everything in their lap and say, ‘you do it’. It was fantastic. Every step of the way, they contacted us, they phoned us, they sent us letters. They even phoned up to see how Robbie was.
People often don't know what entitlements that they may have, or benefits that they may have, to this insurance. There's no doubt though that when people come to us after trying to start the process themselves, we can quickly cut through what they're dealing with. The funds and the insurers know that we will keep going and keep going and make sure that our clients get the benefit that they're entitled to access.
We had one lawyer, her name's Tianne, and week before Christmas she phoned us up and she said I want to talk to you and Robbie. And she said we won it. We persevered and we got it. Even now, I got the tingles even just thinking about it. And Robbie just burst into tears.
I would sing it from the rooftop, Maurice Blackburn. I really would. I'm smiling now because I'm sitting in a room here that Maurice Blackburn doesn't realise, but because of what they did, it's done a room out for Robbie that it's made it easy for him to come in and out. It's wheelchair compatible.
If we didn't have that money, it wouldn't happen. One of the big things instantly it did for Robbie, it gave him some pride back in who he was. It actually made him feel that he can contribute. It was just lovely.
Without Maurice Blackburn nothing would happen. They took the stress away which was a major thing for me because I had a bad problem with stress and stress is bad.
We're here to help when you need us most.
Call us on 1800 196 050, or leave us a message below to request a call back and one of our team will be in touch as soon as we can.