People should not be living in poverty in Australia

“The Coronavirus Supplement was life changing for people who had long survived on the abhorrent amount Newstart (or JobSeeker) had been set at for years. For so long, they had to be great money manage...

March 5, 2021

Saving Responsible Lending: Senate Committee opening statement

On 19 February 2021, Gerard Brody, CEO of Consumer Action Law Centre and Fiona Guthrie, CEO, Financial Counselling Australia spoke at the  Senate Economics Legislation Committee hearing on the  Nation...

March 4, 2021

Buy now pay later sector must be regulated by Government not itself 

Consumer groups have united to call for Federal Government regulation of buy now pay later (BNPL) services to protect consumers and put all credit providers on a level playing field.  Today the Aus...

February 24, 2021

Over 590,000 Australians have relied on safe lending laws for justice

As the Senate Economics Committee hosts hearings in Canberra today, over 22,000 Australians have joined the call for Federal Senators to strengthen instead of repeal safe lending laws, with many sha...

February 19, 2021

Consumer groups support licensing of ‘debt vultures’ but reforms must go further to stop the harm 

While some businesses stepped up to help Australians to recover from the COVID-19 crisis, others sought to profit from people’s desperate financial circumstances. Unregulated debt management firms ...

February 16, 2021

Licensing debt management firms: Exposure draft regulations

While some businesses stepped up to help Australians to recover from the COVID-19 crisis, others have simply sought to profit from people’s desperate financial circumstances. Debt management firms(...

February 16, 2021

Submission: Consultation on revision to the new Prudential Standard APS 220 Credit Risk Management

  This submission is from Consumer Action Law Centre, Financial Rights Legal Centre, Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, CHOICE, Financial Counselling Australia, Consumer Credit Law Service (W...

February 15, 2021

Right to Repair submission to Productivity Commission Inquiry

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback to the Productivity Commission Inquiry into a right to repair. The ability for consumers to access afford...

February 15, 2021

Deferred sales model for add-on insurance – exemptions by class

This submission is made by Consumer Action Law Centre, Financial Rights Legal Centre and WEstjustice. We oppose any exemptions for classes of add-on insurance products from the deferred sales model...

February 15, 2021

Opinion: Responsible lending law repeal will undo good

First published in the Herald Sun, 8 February 2021. In the two years since the Hayne Royal Commission Final Report while the Federal Government has made some changes to strengthen consumer protecti...

February 8, 2021

‘A disastrous winding back of consumer protections’: Consumer groups call on lawmakers to reject proposed changes 

Proposed changes to consumer credit laws before the Senate must be rejected as they risk harm to individuals and families and hindering the economic recovery they are intended to promote. That is t...

February 4, 2021

Submission: National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Supporting Economic Recovery) Bill 2020

This submission is made on behalf of Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action), Financial Rights Legal Centre (Financial Rights), Financial Counselling Australia, Consumer Credit Legal Service (WA)...

February 4, 2021

Consumer advocates call for Parliament to vote against watered-down protections against predatory lenders

Consumer advocates have rejected the Federal Government’s proposed changes to laws governing high-cost payday loans and consumer leases, calling for Parliament to vote against the Bill in a submission...

February 3, 2021

Calling out the banks: Why responsible lending laws need to stay intact

First published in The Age/Sydney Morning Herald, 2 December 2020 It's a great pity that the banks are weighing in so publicly to support the rollback of our responsible lending laws. Just when...

December 4, 2020

Federal Court finds multiple breaches of Australian Consumer Law in relation to credit repair, but not debt management 

Federal Court finds multiple breaches of Australian Consumer Law in relation to credit repair, but not debt management The Federal Court has found that J Daniels & Associates (JDA), a debt mana...

December 1, 2020

Scrapping lending laws would take away legal rights and hinder economic recovery 

Consumer advocates have published a submission on exposure draft legislation that would repeal lending consumer protections in the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, in direct contradiction of t...

November 23, 2020

Treasury consultation: Consumer Credit Reforms our submission

A coalition of consumer advocates have published a submission on exposure draft legislation that would repeal responsible lending laws in the National Consumer Credit Protection Act. The submission p...

November 23, 2020

New report reveals how irresponsible lenders are causing harm in Victorian Aboriginal communities

Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) and the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) are launching a new report on how irresponsible lenders are causing harm in Victorian Aboriginal communit...

February 14, 2020

Consumer Issues in Victorian Aboriginal Communities: Integrated Practice Project Report 2020

‘Consumer issues in Victorian Aboriginal communities’ reports findings from Consumer Action Law Centre’s (Consumer Action) and the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service’s (VALS) Integrated Practice proje...

February 14, 2020