Media Release - Consumer Action Law Centre

Media release: Hire car insurance is not what it seems, in fact, it’s often not insurance at all

As many Victorians head off on holidays, the Consumer Action Law Centre is warning consumers that hire car 'insurance' is not what seems. Indeed, it’s often not insurance at all but, rather, an indemn...

Media release: Contracting competition in the energy retail market results in lacklustre performance

A new report showing three leading energy retailers control almost 75 per cent of market share is bad news for Victorian households which are missing out on the financial benefits and service improvem...

Media release: Public education the key to realising the benefits of Victoria’s smart meter rollout

Households can look forward to the long promised but often delayed benefits of smart meters following the Victorian Government’s decision to go ahead with the rollout, due to be completed by the end o...

Media release: National unfair contract terms and consumer guarantees to be under the spotlight

The Australian Consumer Law’s unfair contract terms provisions are set to be tested in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) after the Consumer Action Law Centre issued proceedings ag...

Media release: Committee’s report shows responsible lending laws aren’t enough

The Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed the finding from a parliamentary committee of inquiry that Australia’s responsible lending laws don’t sufficiently protect consumers from harmful payday loa...

Media release: Door-to-door salespeople meeting a sticky end

A national Do Not Knock campaign, aiming to put a stop to unwelcome, dishonest and intimidating door-to-door salespeople, has begun with the Consumer Action Law Centre launching a new interactive webs...

Media release: Energy rules must change—consumers and big business agree

Consumer groups from around Australia have joined the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) and some of the nation’s biggest businesses in calling for reform to the process that sets electricity network p...

Media release: ASIC payday lending report reveals fundamental non-compliance—a cap is needed

The Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed the Australian Securities and Investment Commission’s (ASIC) report, Review of micro lenders' responsible lending conduct and disclosure obligations. Catrio...

Media release: Time for the Federal Opposition to show its hand on payday lending reforms

A coalition of consumer groups has called on the Federal Opposition to back the Government’s proposed national credit reforms, which are designed to protect payday loan borrowers from effective intere...

Media release: Consumer Action welcomes ASIC investigation into broker responsible lending conduct

Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed the release of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission's (ASIC) investigation into mortgage brokers' responsible lending conduct, focusing on ‘low d...

Media release: Stronger response needed to ensure consumers are protected in times of disaster

The Consumer Action Law Centre has expressed disappointment with the Government’s initial response to the National Disaster Insurance Review (NDIR) Panel's report which it labelled as 'indecisive'. Wh...

Media release: Government warned that new credit card regulation may require running repairs

The Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed the Federal Government’s ban on credit providers making unsolicited credit card limit increase offers to customers, but believes that ambiguity in the regul...

Media release: Is eBay selling consumers short?

The Consumer Action Law Centre has taken its concerns about outdated and potentially misleading information on eBay.com.au to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) after eBay Inter...

Media release: Report into consumer credit insurance exposes dirty tactics

The Consumer Action Law Centre has responded to ASIC’s report into consumer credit insurance (CCI), by saying that it confirms two of its long held suspicions; that many lenders selling CCI are using...

Media release: Payday lending practices challenged in court

The lending practices of Australian’s biggest payday lender, Cash Converters, are being challenged in proceedings issued in the Victorian Magistrates Court. A disability support pensioner is alleging...

Media release: New website delivers the cold hard and sad facts about payday lending

A coalition of consumer and financial counselling organisations has launched a new website to ensure the hard truths are heard in the debate about the future of short term high cost loans - www.debttr...

Media release: Unfair process leading to higher electricity prices

Two prominent consumer advocacy groups are calling for the federal government to abolish the current process of appeal for electricity distribution pricing determinations. A new report released by the...

Media release: Government reforms offer a branch to consumers stuck in high cost short term lending quicksand

The Consumer Action Law Centre has welcomed the Federal Government’s proposed cap on the amounts lenders of high cost short term loans (often referred to as 'payday loans') can recover from consumers,...

Media release: Complex energy contracts are confusing consumers and stifling choice

Energy retail contracts have been put under the microscope in a report just released by the Consumer Action Law Centre. And while the report found that most contracts largely met their regulatory requ...

Media release: Jobseekers should know that unpaid work is unlawful

Two leading community legal centres have joined forces to warn jobseekers about the practices of some recruitment and job placement agencies that are directing clients into unpaid trial work, using th...

Media release: ASIC grants licence to ‘misleading, deceptive and unconscionable’ trader

In a move that has disappointed the Consumer Action Law Centre, ASIC has granted a consumer credit licence to a company whose conduct has been found to be misleading, deceptive and unconscionable. Th...

Media release: New energy sales self-regulation scheme fundamentally flawed

Consumer Action Law Centre has today warned that a new self-regulatory approach for door-to-door sales of energy marketing is unlikely to reduce consumer detriment caused by widespread poor practices...

Media release: 400 per cent interest rates undermine ‘responsible lending laws’

Exorbitant effective interest rates on short term loans, upwards of 400 per cent, continue to put the pinch on vulnerable Australians despite the introduction of responsible lending laws in 2010. Mis...

Media release: Consumer groups urge cross benchers to support a ban on mortgage early exit fees

A coalition of consumer groups is urging Parliament’s cross-benchers to support the Government’s proposed ban on mortgage early exit fees, a ban which will improve competition amongst lenders and shin...

Media release: Legal tribunal finds Motor Finance Wizard’s practices ‘unfair’ and ‘seriously flawed

Motor car dealer and financier Motor Finance Wizard has been ordered to cancel a car lease contract with a vulnerable customer, refund her money and clear her credit report. The legal decision, made...

Media release: Government’s insurance reforms challenge the insurance industry to step up

The Fair Go in Insurance coalition* welcomes the proposed insurance reform package put forward by the Federal Government today but warns that several reforms are not guaranteed and would be unlikely t...

Media release: Dell backs down on contract terms that failed to compute

Consumer Action Law Centre has withdrawn proceedings against Dell Computer Pty Ltd in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal on behalf of its co- CEO, Carolyn Bond after the company amended i...

Media release: Let’s call a flood a flood and give Australians fair go in insurance

A twelve point plan released today by the country’s leading insurance law experts for households and consumers clearly sets out the current problems with insurance and their solutions, and puts the pr...

Media release: Consumer group takes on distributors to keep energy prices down

Consumer advocates are preparing to fight Victoria’s billion-dollar electricity distribution businesses in the Federal Court in a last ditch bid to prevent consumers feeling the pain of unfair electri...

Media release: Consumers must be given a fighting chance against rising electricity and gas bills

Consumer Action Law Centre says it’s time for the Victorian Government and its energy industry watchdog, the Essential Services Commission, to take real action to help consumers switch and save on the...

Media release: Baillieu Government facing its first test on electricity bills after Victorian distributors appeal regulator’s decision to keep process low

Consumer Action Law Centre says Victorians urgently need their new Government to take up its legal right to defend the Australian Energy Regulator’s recent decision to keep electricity costs for Victo...

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