Australian Securities and Investments Commission – inquiry into investigation and enforcement conduct

Effective enforcement action is a critical task of consumer protection regulators and essential to a well-functioning consumer market. In recent years, ASIC has completed a significant amount of meani...

February 28, 2023

A Strategic Plan for the Payments System

We consider the safety and resilience of the payments system to require urgent attention and intervention and outline the reasons for this in our joint submission with Financial Rights Legal Centre....

February 6, 2023

Inquiry into the extent and nature of poverty in Australia

Consumer Action’s financial counsellors and lawyers advise and assist people experiencing financial hardship and poverty on a daily basis. The data Consumer Action collects, as well as the reflections...

February 3, 2023

Code Governance Committee’s monitoring and compliance program for 2023-24 consultation

We are grateful for the opportunity to provide input to the Code Governance Committee’s (CGC) monitoring and compliance program for the 2023-24 financial year. In our submission we recommend that t...

February 1, 2023

Victorian Default Offer 2023-24: Consultation Paper

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Essential Services Commission’s (ESC) Consultation Paper on the review of the Victorian Default Offer (VDO) for 2023-24. On bal...

January 27, 2023

Submission to the Department of Treasury and Finance ahead ofthe 2023-24 Victorian Budget

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action), WEstjustice, Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS), Hume Riverina Community Legal Service, Barwon Community Legal Service and Eastern Community Legal...

January 18, 2023

Treasury Options Paper, Regulating Buy Now Pay Later in Australia

Consumer Action has joined with 22 other organisations as part of the "Close Lending Loopholes Alliance" to make a submission to Treasury on its Options Paper, Regulating Buy Now Pay Later in Australi...

December 23, 2022

Review of the Australian Finance Industry Association (AFIA) Buy Now Pay Later Code of Practice

Consumer Credit Legal Services (WA) Inc. (CCLSWA) has drafted these submissions on behalf of the Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) and its members. CFA is the peak body for consumer organisatio...

December 23, 2022

Draft Telecommunications (Infringement Notice Penalties) Determination 2022

We welcome the opportunity to comment on the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts (the Department) consultation on the draft Telecommunications (I...

December 20, 2022

Financial Counselling Industry Funding Model

Consumer Action Law Centre and Financial Rights Legal Centre have made a joint submission to the Department of Social Services Discussion Paper on the proposed Financial Counselling Industry Funding M...

December 16, 2022

Robodebt Royal Commission: refer debt collection misconduct to the ACCC

Consumer Action has partnered with Financial Counselling Australia and Economic Justice Australia to make a submission to the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme. The submission asks the Roya...

December 9, 2022

Initial feedback: 2023-28 Water Price Review

Access to water is a basic human right recognised by the United Nations and the Australian Government as fundamental to health, wellbeing, and an adequate standard of living. Critical to upholding thi...

December 1, 2022

Financial Services Legislation Inquiry –Interim Report B

Consumer Action has joined with Financial Rights Legal Centre and Redfern Legal Centre to make a submission to the Australian Law Reform Commission in response to its Financial Services Legislation In...

November 30, 2022

Retirement Villages Amendment Bill 2022 Exposure Draft

Retirement living is an important option for many older Victorians. The proposed Retirement Villages Amendment Act includes some positive measures that will improve consumer protection standards. O...

November 23, 2022

Quality of Advice Review

People who seek financial advice, including in relation to insurance, deserve to have confidence that it will be high-quality and free from conflict of interest. Despite this, conflicts of interest co...

November 18, 2022

Protecting consumers of distributed energy resources

With Victorians wanting to play their part in carbon reduction, consumer protections for new energy products and services need to be enhanced. This submission to the Department of Environment Land...

November 14, 2022

Financial Sector Reform Bill 2022 – Compensation Scheme of Last Resort and Financial Accountability Regime

Consumer groups strongly support the passage of a well-designed Compensation Scheme of Last Resort (‘CSLR’) and Financial Accountability Regime (‘FAR’). These reforms are landmark recommendations of t...

October 10, 2022

Submission to Senate Economics Committee: Financial Sector Reform Bill 2022 – consumer credit reforms

The submission, on behalf of 20 community organisations, recommends that the consumer credit reforms in the Finance Sector Reform Bill (FSR Bill) relating to small amount credit contracts and consumer...

October 10, 2022

Quality of Advice Review: Proposals Paper

Australians who seek financial advice have the right to expect that the advice they receive will be independent, high quality and in their best interests. Poor financial advice has lasting impacts on...

September 26, 2022

Water Customer Service Codes Review

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback on the Essential Services Commission’s (the ESC) proposed amendments to the water customer service codes. O...

August 9, 2022

Taxi Non-Cash Payment Surcharge Review 2022

Consumer Action has made a submission to the Essential Services Commission in relation to its Taxi Non-Cash Payment Surcharge Review 2022. The submission opposes the proposed methodology outlined i...

August 2, 2022

Crypto asset secondary service providers consultation paper

Consumer Action broadly supports the intention of the Government to introduce regulation to oversee the rapidly growing crypto asset environment. The crypto marketplace currently poses significant...

May 30, 2022

Retailer authorisation and exemption review: Issues Paper

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Australian Energy Regulator’s (the AER) Issues Paper as part of its review of the retailer authorisation and exemption frameworks...

May 27, 2022

Joint consumer submission on the Independent TIO Review

This is a joint submission from Consumer Action Law Centre, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN),  Financial Counselling Australia and WEstjustice. Our submission draws on...

May 18, 2022

Review of the Victorian Default Offer Order in Council

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Victorian Government’s review of the Order in Council (the Order) that was used to give effect to the Victorian Default Offer (the...

April 29, 2022

Victorian Default Offer electricity tariffs 2022-23

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Essential Services Commission’s (the ESC) Draft Decision for Victorian Default Offer (the VDO) tariffs to apply...

April 14, 2022

Victorian Property Market Review

Consumer Action has provided a submission to the Victorian Property Market Review. The review is an important opportunity to improve property market laws to support Victorians to have fairer and easie...

April 11, 2022

The Australian Communication and Media Authority’s compliance priorities 2022-23

The impact of COVID-19 and lockdowns during 2021 underscored the essential nature of telecommunications, as well as the effect of poor telecommunications practices on people experiencing vulnerability...

March 29, 2022

US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Inquiry into Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) Providers

While there have always been various forms of instalment credit products in the marketplace, Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) is a uniquely Australian invention, that has now been exported around the world....

March 29, 2022

Options Paper: Possible reforms to the bankruptcy system

This joint submission to the Attorney General's Department is made by Consumer Action and Financial Rights Legal Centre. It is staggering that the Government is proposing to roll back its own highl...

March 28, 2022

ALRC Report 137: Submission to Interim Report A

The Australian Law Reform Commission’s (ALRC) first Interim Report as part of a three-year review of complexity in Commonwealth legislation regulating corporations and financial services, has been tab...

March 7, 2022

Consultation Paper 350: Consumer Remediation

The following organisations have contributed to and endorsed this submission:• Consumer Action Law Centre, Financial Rights Legal Centre, and Super Consumers Australia. We support a continuing focu...

February 28, 2022

Improving the effectiveness of the consumer guarantee and supplier indemnification provisions under the Australian Consumer Law

Consumers expect to purchase products that work, and when they don’t work people should be easily able to enforce their consumer guarantee rights. We welcome the opportunity to provide comments to...

February 11, 2022

Banking Code Compliance Priorities 2022-23

The Banking Code Compliance Committee’s (BCCC) administration and enforcement of the Banking Code of Practice (the Code) is a key aspect of regulatory oversight in the banking sector. The BCCC’s mo...

February 7, 2022

Quality of financial advice review–Draft Terms of Reference

Conflicted remuneration is the root cause of many of the problems uncovered by the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry (Royal Commission)....

February 3, 2022

ASIC Consultation Paper 354: Relief for simple arrangements following a hardship notice

The Australian Investments and Securities Commission's (ASIC) Class Order 14/41 is due to expire in March 2022. Consumer organisations recommend that ASIC allows this to happen. This instrument no...

February 1, 2022

Product intervention orders in credit: A joint submission

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action), Financial Rights Legal Centre (Financial Rights), the Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network Ltd (ICAN), the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and WEstju...

January 24, 2022

Our submission on Buy Now Pay Later to the UK Woolard Review

Our casework experience in Australia shows that buy now pay later (BNPL) debts are causing or exacerbating financial hardship in substantially the same manner as detailed in the Woolard Review. In...

January 19, 2022

Consumer protections and the Post-2025 Distributed Energy Resources Implementation Plan

As the Energy Security Board (the ESB) begins to develop its 3-year reform road map to unlock value for customers from the integration of Distributed Energy Resources (DER) and flexible demand into en...

January 13, 2022

Privacy Act Review – Discussion Paper our submission

This submission is Consumer Action’s response to the Privacy Act Review Discussion Paper, published by the Attorney General’s Department in October 2021. We are responding solely to the proposals a...

January 10, 2022

Joint Consumer Submission to Regional Banking Taskforce

Banking is an essential service that is critical to the wellbeing of consumers, small businesses and community organisations in regional Australia. However, accelerating branch closures are creating v...

December 17, 2021

Submission: Compensation Scheme of Last Resort and Financial Accountability Regime

Uncompensated losses arising from financial misconduct can cause a range of lasting impacts on people, including the loss of a family home, bankruptcy, the collapse of the family business, mental and...

December 17, 2021

Our submission to New Zealand Government inquiry into buy-now pay-later

Our submission is supported by Financial Counselling Australia, the peak body for financial counsellors (commonly known as financial mentors in New Zealand), who work with not-for-profit community org...

December 16, 2021

Central and Gippsland Region Sustainable Water Strategy: Our submission

Access to water is an indispensable human right. All Victorians have the right to enjoy access to safe, reliable water supplies, so that they are able live healthy and dignified lives. Fundamental...

December 10, 2021

Our comments on the Telecommunications Reform Bill

Telecommunications services are essential services – but are not regulated as such despite their critical role across the country. We appreciate the opportunity to comment on this plan to reform an in...

December 1, 2021

Payment difficulty framework implementation review: feedback on key review questions

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) has provided feedback on the Essential Services Commission’s key review questions as part of their review of the implementation of the energy payment diff...

November 30, 2021

Victorian pre-Budget submission 2022-23

Victoria desperately needs a specialist dispute service to assist people sold defective motor vehicles. Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action), Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS), WEst...

November 15, 2021

Review of the Banking Code Compliance Committee: Our response to the Interim Report

This joint submission from Consumer Action Law Centre, Financial Rights Legal Centre, Financial Counselling Australia, Care ACT, Consumer Credit Legal Service (WA) Inc and Council on The Ageing (COTA)...

November 4, 2021

Comment on the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman new Terms of Reference

Draft Guidance: Compensation for non-financial loss and systemic issues  This submission is made jointly by Consumer Action Law Centre and WEstJustice. We welcome the opportunity to comment on t...

October 26, 2021

Victorian Default Offer 2022

Consumer Action Law Centre welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Essential Services Commission’s Draft Decision: Victorian Default Offer from 1 January 2022 (the draft decision). The draft dec...

October 12, 2021