News - Consumer Action Law Centre

‘A matter of urgency’: Community sector calls on Senate to pass the Financial Sector Reform Bill now

Community organisations that are part of the Stop the Debt Trap Alliance are urging the Senate not to further delay the Financial Sector Reform (FSR) Bill. The Bill needs to be passed as a matter of u...

ACMA Telstra direction reveals weak and worrying gaps in its powers to regulate telecommunications

Consumer advocates* are raising deep concerns about the ineffective framework for telco regulation in Australia following a direction from the Australian Communications Media Authority (ACMA) to Telst...

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...

Buy now pay later changes must go all the way, consumer groups say

Buy now pay later (BNPL) products must be fully regulated as credit to protect consumers and put all credit providers on a level playing field, a coalition of consumer groups has said. The group, i...

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...

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...

Our Impact 2021-22: It’s the change we are making, helping people fight the powerful, advocating for a fairer Australia

Today we are delighted to publish our Impact Report 2021-22 which highlights our organisation’s achievements over the past year working for and with the people we help. Read about the many successe...

Let’s pass the Finance Sector Reform Bill: The Stop the Debt Alliance strongly endorses Senate committee recommendation

The Stop the Debt Trap Alliance, a coalition of dozens of consume advocacy organisations from around Australia, including financial experts, community advocates and service providers has strongly endo...

ConsumerAction · Hannah Dodd's advice for Consumer Action’s next Managing Lawyer 'be kind'

PODCAST: Hannah Dodd’s advice for Consumer Action’s next Managing Lawyer ‘be kind’

Hannah Dodd, Consumer Action's Managing Lawyer talks about her nearly five years at CALC, and what she is looking forward to in her new role at Australian Financial Complaints Authority. She talks...

Impacted by flood? Crucial tips about insurance to bear in mind

Consumer Action Managing Lawyer Philippa Heir is an expert in the complex law around insurance and at this critical time she gives the following tips for people whose homes have been impacted by the V...

“Time for the financial harms to stop”: Consumer groups urge Senate to quickly pass reforms on payday loans and consumer leases

Consumer Action is one of 20 community organisations strongly recommending that the consumer credit reforms in the Finance Sector Reform Bill (FSR Bill), relating to Small Amount Credit Contracts (SAC...

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...

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...

Harvey-Norman and Latitude case alleging misleading ‘interest-free’ credit card promotions welcomed by consumer advocates

Consumer Action, Financial Rights Legal Centre and CHOICE have welcomed the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) commencing legal action against Latitude Finance Australia and Har...

OPINION: Optus data breach underscores urgent need for reforms to protect Australians from scams

Opinion piece by Gerard Brody, CEO Consumer Action The massive data breach affecting up to 9.8 million Optus customers has shone a spotlight on what can be done to protect Australians from harm and...

People should get their money back quicker and more easily following new ASIC guidance, say consumer advocates

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has today published updated and revised remediation guidance for financial firms with the goal of treating wronged customers fairer and ensur...

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...

TIO annual report reveals complaints about mobile services at five-year high

The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) annual report released today has revealed stark contrasts—while complaints about phone and internet services decreased in the year ending 30 June 2022,...

Finally, time to Stop the Debt Trap!

Consumer advocates making up the Stop the Debt Trap coalition across Australia have welcomed the introduction of the Financial Sector Reform Bill 2022 which, among other things, enhances long overdue...

With scams at crisis levels, banks and payment system providers must do more

Online and telephone scams targeting Australians are now at crisis levels and victims will continue to bear the burden of financial losses, which will only get worse without urgent action from governm...

Hundreds of thousands of lemon cars sold ‘down the lane’, why we need an ombudsman

Data from Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) actions, recalls and other court actions has revealed that there are hundreds of thousands of lemons on Australia’s roads, many of which...

Quality of Advice Review proposal: A major step backwards in consumer financial protection

Consumer groups have responded to the Quality of Advice Review’s proposal to dismantle core consumer protections Quotes attributable to Consumer Action Law Centre CEO Gerard Brody “One of the si...

Consumer Action board announces CEO departure

The board of Consumer Action Law Centre has announced that its CEO, Gerard Brody, will step down from the role after more than 11 years with the Centre. The board is pleased that Mr Brody will continu...

“A decade-long disgrace”: Thousands likely remain uncompensated by the Freedom Insurance Remediation program

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission revealed today that it is likely thousands of customers remain entitled to an unclaimed refund from the Freedom Insurance Remediation Program. “...

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...

ConsumerAction · Save Sorry Business Day of Action 3 August with Josephine Beckhurst

PODCAST: Josephine Beckhurst and the #SaveSorryBusiness Canberra Day of Action

Josephine Beckhurst is a Yorta Yorta woman from Barmah in Victoria's north. Josephine and her family are among the many thousands of First Nations Australians ripped off by Youpla/ACBF, the funeral in...

Our Policy and Campaign Priorities for 2022-23

Consumer Action has revealed its Policy and Campaign Priorities for 2022-23 with a refreshed focus on making the marketplace for consumers fairer. Director of Policy and Campaigns Tania Clarke said...

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...

Wholesale energy upheaval should not push default electricity prices higher

The Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) has written to Kate Symons, Chairperson of the Essential Services Commission (ESC), urging caution before accepting electricity retailer arguments to r...

Embedded networks ban promotes consumer choice and is a win for Victorians

The announcement today from the Victorian Minister for Energy Lily D’Ambrosio banning embedded networks in new residential apartment buildings, and improving protections for existing networks,...

First step towards a resolution” Save Sorry Business Coalition welcomes initial response from government on Youpla/ACBF collapse

The Save Sorry Business Coalition, which is supported by 130 organisations and almost 20,000 individuals, welcomes today’s Government announcement for the family of policy holders who have passed and...

‘Telcos still behaving badly’: Report highlighting key drivers of customer complaints welcomed

Consumer Action has welcomed a report released today from the Telecommunciations Industry Ombudsman (TIO) that reveals a high level of customer complaints about poor mobile services and the continued...

Intense cost of living pressures make longstanding reforms to high-cost credit urgent

An edited version of this opinion piece appeared in the Herald Sun on 19 July 2022 Way back in November 2016, the Turnbull Government announced that it would implement recommendations made by an in...

ASIC lending model ban on rogue lender Cigno applauded

Consumer Action welcomed today’s announcement from the corporate regulator Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) that it will use its product intervention power to ban the excessivel...

“Devastating cultural and financial impact”: First Nations communities in crisis after Youpla collapse

New data reveals the local communities hit hardest by predatory insurer as calls grow for urgent Federal Government action “The collapse of the predatory funeral fund Youpla (ACBF) is having a deva...

Consumer and social service groups welcome community consultation on removing buy-now-pay-later and other credit loopholes

Key consumer and social service groups are welcoming the Federal Government’s announcement that the process of introducing better safeguards for buy now pay later (BNPL) and other credit products has...

SERVICES

ASSISTANCE FROM US

COURSES

RESOURCES

ENGAGE WITH US

SUPPORT IS HERE:

POLICY

CAMPAIGNS

CHANGE IS HERE:

ABOUT US

WORK WITH US

WHO WE HELP

WE ARE HERE: