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....
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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)....
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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)...
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...
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...
Review of the ABA Banking Code of Practice –response to Interim Report
This joint submission is made on behalf of members of the Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) and other consumer representatives and advocates. It builds upon our previous submission made to revi...
The Life Insurance Code final round of consultation
Financial Rights Legal Centre, Consumer Action Law Centre and Redfern Legal Centre have made a joint submission to the final round of consultation on the review of the Life Insurance Code of Practice...
