Lebogang Mogashoa, Pension Funds Adjudicator
The Office of the Pension Funds Adjudicator (OPFA) has received more than 13 000 complaints in the past financial year – an all-time record in nearly three decades.
The OPFA received 13 041 complaints – the highest in its 28-year history since it was established in January 1998. This represents a 26% increase compared to the 10 331 complaints received in the previous year and a 39% increase from the 10-year average of 9 411 complaints.
Presenting his first annual report, Adjudicator Lebogang Mogashoa, who took over the reins last December from Muvhango Lukhaimane after her 12-year tenure, said the significant growth in complaints was clear evidence that the OPFA had firmly established itself as a credible, efficient and trusted dispute-resolution body for the pension funds industry.
The government’s position is quite clear: retirement saving is an important part of ensuring that workers can support themselves in old age and do not become excessively dependent on family or the state. The OPFA’s statutory role is to investigate and resolve complaints involving pension funds fairly, economically and expeditiously, which in turn fosters confidence in South Africa’s pension fund system.
Two-Pot system increased complaints
Mogashoa said the high number of complaints may be attributed to Increased public awareness, publicity around unclaimed benefits, and persistent service delivery issues from funds. The implementation of the two-pot retirement system in September 2024 aimed at balancing members’ short-term financial needs with long-term retirement preservation, also exposed governance, administration and operational challenges, contributing to an unprecedented increase in complaints.
Non-payment of contributions by participating employers continued to be the highest category (at 61.48%) of complaints investigated and closed, followed by withdrawal benefits at 22.93%. Jointly, these two categories constitute 84% of the total closed complaints categories. Further, the two categories often overlap with one another with a complainant only discovering that his or her employer failed to pay contributions at the stage when they are withdrawing their benefit.
The Private Security Sector Provident Fund was implicated in 75.60% of all complaints received, followed by Contract Cleaning National Provident Fund (3.78%); Transport Sector Retirement Fund (3.23%); Alexander Forbes Retirement Fund (2.66%) and Sanlam Umbrella Provident Fund (1.94%).
Walk-in complaints remain popular, despite increased digital uptake
Approximately 70% of all complaints received were received through digital channels (e-mail and website), but walk-ins still remained popular, with 27% of all complaints having been received by the office through this method. This highlights the need for the OPFA to continue investing in digital channels, while remaining mindful of South Africa’s digital divide.
Gauteng contributed the most complaints lodged with the OPFA at 45.6%, and the Northern Cape contributed the least, with only 2.5% of all complaints lodged. This emphasises the need for more targeted stakeholder engagement to ensure that all areas have access to the services of the OPFA.
Highest number of complaints finalised
Despite the significant volume of complains, the OPFA demonstrated remarkable resilience and operational effectiveness, finalising 91% of cases within six months.
The OPFA demonstrated its effectiveness by investigating and finalising 11 047 complaints during the year under review, the highest number of matters finalised in a single reporting period since the establishment of the Office.
Non-compliance with Section 13A
Mogashoa said a continuing area of concern was complaints relating to non-compliance with section 13A of the Pension Funds Act, where employers fail to pay over retirement fund contributions deducted from employees’ remuneration.
He said such conduct undermines confidence in the retirement fund system and compromises the important social protection objectives that retirement savings are intended to serve.
The Financial Services Tribunal received 104 applications for reconsideration of OPFA determinations during the year under review. Of these, 63 applications were dismissed, thereby upholding the OPFA’s decisions.
The level of demand for the OPFA’s dispute resolution function continues to exert pressure on operational capacity and underscores the importance of ongoing process optimisation, strengthened case management disciplines and accelerated digital enablement.
“It also highlights the need for improved responsiveness across the retirement funds industry, particularly with regard to the timely submission of information and effective participation in the adjudication process,” Mogashoa said.
Strengthen the Adjudication function
Mogashoa said the evolving financial ombud landscape presented both opportunity and complexity. Ongoing reform processes were expected to influence aspects of the OPFA’s mandate and its interaction with other ombud schemes.
“These developments require careful implementation, with a focus on maintaining service quality, enhancing coordination and ensuring continued accessibility.
“The funding environment remains an important strategic consideration. While the levy-based funding model enhances institutional independence, uncertainties in levy approval processes necessitate prudent financial management and ongoing engagement with relevant stakeholders,” he said.
Looking ahead, the OPFA will continue to strengthen its core adjudication function while enhancing its systemic contribution to the retirement funds sector. This includes the use of data and insights to identify recurring issues, support policy development and promote improved industry conduct.
Mogashoa said staff training on the two-pot system is ongoing to maintain a high standard of complaint resolution. One of the foreseeable challenges under the two-pot retirement system is the potential increase in future complaints from members seeking access to their retirement component prior to reaching retirement age, which is prohibited by current legislation.
He said in response to concerns around financial hardship, National Treasury has indicated that Phase 2 of the two-pot system may explore conditional access to the retirement component for retrenched members who have no other source of income.
“It remains essential for retirement funds to continue communicating the implications of withdrawing from the savings component, tax consequences and preservation requirements of the retirement component to ensure that members are fully informed and able to make responsible financial decisions,” Mogashoa said.
Read the OPFA’s Integrated Report for 2025/6 here.
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