Banking and Finance - Consumer Action Law Centre

New research shows struggling Australians suffering while the payday lending sector booms: Consumer groups

Consumer groups have cautioned policy makers not to fall for payday lending spin as new research from Digital Finance Analytics (DFA) shows the devastating impact of the industry on Australians strugg...

Cash Converters taken to court after reforms fail to protect vulnerable

Payday lending reforms from 2013 have failed vulnerable Australians according to Consumer Action Law Centre, as they take Cash Converters to court on behalf of a disability support pensioner over a ca...

ASIC report highlights exorbitant costs of rent-to-buy household goods: Consumer groups

The poorest and most vulnerable Australians are paying grossly inflated prices for household goods via “rent-to-buy” or “consumer lease” deals, as shown by a new report from the Australian Securities...

Rent-to-buy products must be kicked off Centrepay

Leading consumer groups are calling for the Australian Parliament to support moves by the Senate to protect the integrity of Centrelink’s budgeting tool for essentials, Centrepay, by excluding rent-to...

Review is opportunity to improve protections for payday loan and rent-to-buy borrowers

Payday lending and rent-to-buy products are often a source of financial distress and hardship according to Consumer Action Law Centre. The centre welcomes the Federal Government's announcement that it...

ALP National Conference: Labor needs to take a stand on payday loans.

Where the poorest pay the most - our session at #ALPConf2015 Fringe #auspol — Consumer Action (@consumer_action) July 26, 2015 Today, at an ALP National Conference fringe event, Consumer Actio...

Don’t make the poor pay more – time to end the free ride for rent to buy businesses: Consumer Groups

Consumer groups say draft legislation to ban rent-to-buy goods providers from Centrepay (Centrelink’s service that allows third parties to receive direct payment from welfare payments) is an essential...

Australians should be compensated for poor financial advice: Consumer groups

Australia’s leading consumer groups have made a joint submission to the Senate Economics Committee’s Scrutiny of Financial Advice Inquiry calling for a last resort compensation scheme for consumers wi...

Submission to the Inquiry into the financial hardship arrangements of energy retailers

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) welcomes the opportunity to provide input into the Essential Services Commission's (the Commission) Inquiry into the financial hardship arrangements of ene...

Submission: Review of Card Payments Regulation Issues Paper

The Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) and Financial Rights Legal Centre (Financial Rights) welcome the opportunity to comment on the Review of Card Payments Regulation Issues Paper (the Iss...

Too many Australians have suffered at the hands of financial advisers

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes reports that independent Senator Nick Xenophon MP and Labor Senator Sam Dastyari have called for a last resort compensation scheme for financial services...

Submission: Financial System Inquiry Final Report

The Financial System Inquiry (FSI) Final Report was released in December 2014. Consumer Action has made a submission to the Treasury as part of consultation on the final report. A full copy of our su...

Media Release: Australians want changes to Payday Lending industry

Australia’s leading consumer advocates and largest microfinance organisation have today called on the Australian Government to take a fresh look at regulation governing payday lending. New research r...

Media Release: Payday lending report questions compliance with the law

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomed a new report from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) which questions whether payday lenders are complying with the law. The 2013 law ref...

Media release: Consumer advocates welcome Allianz’s $400,016 refund but warn mis-selling of insurance is an ongoing problem

Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed news that Allianz Australia Insurance will refund $400,016 to Australians who were sold its Consumer Credit Insurance (CCI) alongside payday loans. Consumer Ac...

Media release: ‘Vendor terms’ home ownership deal a fantasy with no basis in reality

The spotlight will be on ‘vendor terms’ home sales in a new case before the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). ‘Vendor terms’ contracts are an alternative to mainstream bank mortgages...

Submission: Facilitating electronic financial services disclosure

Consumer Action has provided a submission on the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's Consultation Paper 224: Facilitating electronic financial services disclosure. Our responses to the...

Bank West to stop charging a fee for cancelling a direct debit payment

Earlier this year consumer advocates got wind that that Bank West was charging a $15 fee for cancelling a direct debit payment. So we looked around and couldn’t find a single other bank or mutual that...

Submission: Financial System Inquiry – Improving Consumer Disclosure

The Financial System Inquiry Interim Report notes that the current disclosure regime for retail financial products and services is not always effective in meeting its objective. It produces complex an...

Submission: Financial System Inquiry Interim Report

Consumer Action welcomed the panel's interim report, particularly that fairness, as much as stability and efficiency, are important objectives for the financial system. We strongly support the panel's...

Media release: As fixed term interest rates fall to record lows, borrowers advised to look beyond the short term

As Australian banks cut fixed term interest rates on home loans to record lows, financial counsellors at Consumer Action Law Centre have advised prospective borrowers to consider the longer term and w...

Summary of Consumer Leases and Consumer Protection: Regulatory Arbitrage and Consumer Harm

Key points the regulatory distinction between 'consumer leases' and 'credit contracts' used in the National Credit Code is flawed and has created opportunities for regulatory arbitrage (defined b...

Submission: Financial Systems Inquiry Terms of Reference

Consumer Action welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Financial Systems Inquiry. The submission below responds to the Inquiry's terms of reference released on 20 December 2013. The submission...

Submission: Consumer Credit Regulations

Consumer Action and the Consumer Credit Legal Centre NSW have made a joint submission to Treasury on exposure draft consumer credit regulations affecting payday lenders. In summary, we are supportive...

Submission: Filing fees for debtors’ petitions, overseas travel requests and an increase to the realisations charge

A scan of Consumer Action's casework records (including both our legal advice and financial counselling services) reveals that we have on record at least 1900 calls from low income and vulnerable clie...

Federal Court finds ANZ late fees were penalty charges

The Federal Court has ruled that ANZ’s credit card late fees were penalty charges rather than a cost recovery measure. This is significant because, while businesses can recover the costs of late paym...

Submission: Financial System Inquiry—Draft Terms of Reference

Consumer Action welcomes the opportunity to comment on the draft terms of reference for the Financial System Inquiry. In summary, we recommend that: the overall objective for the Inquiry could be e...

Media release: The numbers show Consumer Credit Insurance is a poor deal for consumers

New figures from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority show Australians spent $330 million on Consumer Credit Insurance in the twelve months to June this year, yet only 23 cents in every doll...

Submission: Review of the regulation of owners’ corporation managers

Consumer Action has provided comment to the Review of the regulation of owners’ corporation managers Issues Paper. Our submission makes two primary recommendations: that the unfair contract term pr...

Submission: Post Implementation Review of Ban on Mortgage Exit Fees

Consumer Action has contributed to the Post Implementation Review of the ban on mortgage exit fees. Briefly, this submission supports the existing ban on mortgage exit fees; argues that ava...

Media release: Cash Converters sued for breaching its responsible lending obligations

Two Cash Converters franchises are being sued in the Magistrates Court by a Victorian mother who received 83 payday loans over three and a half years–54 of which were loans from Cash Converters outlet...

Media release: Maurice Blackburn class action to highlight the sad truth about payday lending

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes Maurice Blackburn’s class action against Cash Converters, which alleges Cash Converters ‘illegally exploited thousands of financially struggling Australians by impo...

Direct Share Purchasing Corporation – defence kit

This self help kit was written at a time when Direct Share Purchasing Corporation had sued a number of consumers. Changes to the law have made it unlikely that consumers will see these types of cases...

Report: The Hidden Cost of ‘Rent to Own’

We’ve all seen adverts promoting ‘Rent to Buy’ or ‘Rent to Own’ arrangements, where customers rent a product for a number of years before being given the option to buy or keep that product, but our la...

Media release: ASIC case against The Cash Store to shape the future of payday lending

One of Australia’s biggest payday lenders, The Cash Store, will face allegations of irresponsible lending and unconscionable conduct before the Federal Court. The case being brought by the Australian...

Submission: Credit hardship obligations—outstanding issues

Consumer Action, Consumer Credit Legal Centre NSW, and Financial Counselling Australia have made a joint submission on Australian Securities and Investments Commission's discussion paper Credit Hardsh...

Consumers urged to get advice regarding rent to buy car agreements from Plunkett Rd in Dandenong

Consumer Action is urging consumers to seek legal advice if they have entered into a rent to buy car agreement at 10-12 Plunkett Rd in Dandenong. This agreement may be with R.V. Investments (Aust) Pty...

New infographic illustrates the harm of payday loans

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How do I get more information about my loan?

Key points: If you are a borrower, mortgagor, or guarantor, under most consumer credit contracts the creditor is obliged by law to give you: your credit contract, mortgage, or guarantee; acco...

Cancelling a direct debit on a statement account

Key Message: You can cancel a direct debit from your bank account (not a credit card); Get advice about the consequences of not paying a debt before you stop payments. What is a direct debi...

Bank Fees Refund Scam

Use this Fact Sheet if: You have received an unsolicited phone call from someone claiming to be from Consumer Action or a similar organisation; AND They claimed that the bank has overcharged y...

Submission: Credit card surcharges and non-transparent transaction fees

Consumer Action Law has made a submission to the Commonwealth Consumer Affairs Advisory Council’s study into Credit Card Surcharges and Non-Transparent Transaction Fees. We believe the key problems i...

Submission: Review of the Benchmarks for Industry-based Customer Dispute Resolution Schemes

Consumer Action has made a submission to the Commonwealth Consumer Affairs Advisory Council review of the benchmarks for industry dispute resolution schemes. In broad terms, we strongly support the b...

Media release: Financial Counselling groups welcome banks’ new hardship package

Financial Counselling Australia, the Consumer Action Law Centre and the Consumer Credit Legal Centre have welcomed a new hardship package released by the Australian Bankers Association (ABA) today. T...

Submission: Proposals to strengthen regulation of debenture companies

Consumer Action has provided a submission to the discussion paper, Banking Act exemptions and section 66 guidelines, published by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. The discussion paper p...

Joint Submission: Changes to Disclosure Requirements under the National Consumer Protection Act 2009

Consumer Action and the Consumer Credit Legal Centre welcomes Treasury's approach of basing revised disclosure on the findings made by the Uniquest report. Uniquest was commissioned by the Standing Co...

Media release: Pensioner sues two Cash Converters lenders in the Magistrates’ Court

A Victorian Disability Support Pensioner has issued proceedings in the Magistrates' Court against two Cash Converters lenders.[1] Consumer Action's client alleges that over approximately a three year...

Nimble one cent loan could be setting you up to fail

A recent report looking at use of short-term cash loans showed half of borrowers interviewed had taken out more than ten loans in the previous two years, and three quarters of this group had taken out...

Submission: The exemption of retailers from the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009

Consumer Action has made a submission on Treasury's Discussion paper regarding the exemption of retailers from the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009. Briefly, this submission: supports o...

Submission: Commonwealth Treasury consumer leases issues paper

Consumer Action has made a submission to the Commonwealth Treasury on regulation of consumer leases. The submission argues that the purpose of any reform of regulation of consumer leases should be to:...

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