News

Consumer Action Law Centre strongly supports the Banking Code Compliance Committee (BCCC) examining Code compliance through Bank@Post closely. We frequently hear anecdotal issues with accessing banking services at Australia Post, due to the limited range of services, poorly trained and supervised staffed, and physical limitations (for example, no private spaces to discuss your needs in a small community where people generally know each other). The trend in branch closures means higher reliance on Bank@Post and we believe the BCCC will find increasing noncompliance or poor practices.

We are concerned by the Australian Banking Association’s (ABA) application to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to remove reporting requirements from their authorisation for Basic Bank Accounts (BBAs), particularly given the same conditions were considered unnecessary to codify because of the ACCC requirements.

We urge the BCCC to look at compliance with the ‘Eligible Customer Condition’ to proactively identify customers who are eligible for BBAs. ASIC’s REP 785 identified systemic failings at significant cost to customers experiencing vulnerability. The starkest failing was in migrating customers to BBAs. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission’s report looked only at four banks and we encourage the BCCC to look across its subscribers. We note that the ABA stated in its 2024 application that the ‘significant uptake’ of BBAs means there is no public benefit in maintaining the obligation. This ignores the continuous emergence of new eligible customers including young adults, new migrants, and those experiencing financial hardship for the first time, as well as customers who switch banks into a high-fee account.

We agree that compliance with the BBA Code obligations is an important priority to monitor closely because if the ACCC determines to remove the requirements, then there will be reduced oversight. We are concerned that the obligations may be watered down or removed in the next Code Review. Our submission to the ACCC is available on our website.

Read our full submission (PDF).