Westscheme chief executive Howard Rosario expects superannuation funds to lift fees as they struggle to keep up with rising administration costs.
Rosario said consolidation of lost members could have a significant impact on funds as there would be fewer accounts to serve, placing pressure on how administration costs were levied.
"I imagine that we will have to review the situation once the impact of lost members' consolidation has worked its way through the process and look at if the fees should be higher," he said.
People with one fund would probably end up paying high administration fees, he said.
"Overall, people with multiple funds will do better, so many of them are member protected, so they're impacting on single account holders," he said.
Funds were currently paying millions of dollars in fee protection, he said.
"Last year it impacted on us to the extent of $2.5 million because of the extent of the investment loss. This year when we have losses likely to be double last year it will be significant again," he said.
Administration costs are also impacting on funds.
"There used to be one contact per member per year, but now that's grown to three. That's the sort of engagement we're getting during the downturn as people are nervous about their situation," Rosario said.
In March, Westscheme raised administration fees by 20 per cent as part of an effort to prepare for potential future losses caused by the financial downturn.
