Consumer Action News
August 2008
15/8: Reckless lending and credit card limit increases. Consumer Action has released a landmark report today exposing the different psychological manipulations used by banks and other credit providers to persuade people to take up offers for higher credit card limits. The report – Congratulations, You’re Pre-Approved! – is the first of its kind in Australia. Read our media release.
11/8: Privacy and credit reporting. Consumer Action has welcomed today’s release of the Australian Law Reform Commission’s report into Australia’s privacy laws and practice, and in particular its sensible recommendation that responsible lending obligations must be implemented in Commonwealth, state and territory laws before the Government consider allowing credit reports to include individuals’ repayment histories. Read our media release.
11/8 Insurance and flood cover. Consumer Action, together with several other organisations, is vigorously opposing a push by the Insurance Council of Australia asking the ACCC to authorise a proposal for insurers to be able to share a common definition of ‘inland flood’. The Insurance Council’s proposal would unfairly expand what is understood as a “flood” well beyond its natural meaning, with the likely result that more damage will be excluded as “flood” under ordinary Australians’ household insurance policies. Our joint submission sets out our concerns in more detail, including that the Insurance Council has failed to consult with the community about the important issue of insurance coverage for flood.
8/8 National Energy Market reform. National regulation of our energy market is drawing closer, and the final processes to determine aspects of non-economic regulation, including the National Energy Customer Framework, are underway. Consumer Action and the National Consumers’ Roundtable on Energy today made a joint submission to the Ministerial Council on Energy, to ensure consumer protections are maintained or enhanced through this transition. Victorian households, who current benefit from Victoria’s best practice energy consumer protection framework, are at risk of losing hard fought-for protections in the transition to national regulation.
7/8: Private car parks. Consumer Action has launched a test case against Australian National Car Parks Pty Ltd in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, after the car park charged a consumer $66 for failing to display a valid ticket in a free car park. Read our media release.
6/8 Unit pricing. Consumer Action welcomes the Federal Government’s announcement that it will introduce a mandatory, national, uniform unit pricing regime in Australia. An effective unit pricing regime will bring significant benefits to Australian households. It is now important that the Government ensure the regime is effective in practice by requiring unit prices to be displayed in a large enough print size for consumers to read, and to use appropriate units of measurement such as per kilogram and per litre so that price differences are easy to understand.
1/8: Bank penalty fees. Consumer Action and CHOICE are continuing their Fair Fees campaign. We have made a joint submission to the current Review of the Code of Banking Practice, arguing that the Code (which sets out how the banks must deal with their customers) should make sure banks follow better practice with regard to penalty fees, including limiting the amount of these fees to the banks’ costs and getting rid of the most unfair fees altogether.
July 2008
25/7: Competition in the banking sector. Consumer Action has provided a submission to the House of Representatives Economics Committee Inquiry into Competition in the Banking Sector. We argue that while competition is working in some areas of banking, there are also failures of competition. We are particularly concerned of the inability of consumers to drive competition, partly due to barriers to switching such as the imposition of large early termination fees on mortgages. We call on the Government to ensure consumers can easily compare and swtich between banking products, to further drive competitive outcomes.
21/7: Reckless lending. Many Australian lenders use of the term ‘responsible lending’ to describe various approaches to marketing and selling credit that are regarded as ‘ethical’ or ‘appropriate’. Consumer Action is concerned that there is still much ‘irresponsible’ or ‘reckless’ lending in the marketplace. We have produced a briefing paper that explores issues related to reckless lending and asks ‘to what extent do borrower and lender interests align in the marketing and selling of credit’? Click here to download the briefing paper.
9/7: Debt collection. Are you getting debt threats? Have you felt threatened by a debt collector? The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission are holding a Debt Collection Phone-in Day. If you have experienced problems with debt collectors or creditors, you can phone in to talk about your experience. Call the Debt Collection Phone-in Day Hotline on 1300 302 502. Thursday, 31 July 2008, 8.30am to 5.30pm. Click here for more information.
8/7: Bankruptcy trustees fees. Consumer Action is concerned about the excessive levels of fees charged by some bankruptcy trustees. We are concerned that the regulatory framework does not sufficiently protect bankrupts and that competition is not working to ensure efficient and fair outcomes. We have provided a submission to the Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia about the framework for the remuneration of bankruptcy trustees, including a case study outlining the experience of a Consumer Action client.
4/7: Ensuring fair energy pricing. Consumer Action has released a fact sheet about reforms needed to ensure consumers benefit from the competitive energy market. We are calling on the Victorian Government to require retailers to publish details of all market contracts and ensure offers are comparable, by mandating disclosure of certain features and requiring consistent terminology.
4/7: On the Wire. The latest edition of On the Wire, Consumer Action's regular newsletter on community sector involvement and interest in the national energy market, is now available. To subscribe, please email info@consumeraction.org.au with 'On the Wire' in the subject line.
June 2008
28/6: National Say NO to the Wizard day: Consumer advocates in three states are campaigning against unfair motor car trading practices, with a national 'Say NO to the Wizard' day on 28 June 2008. Read our press release.
17/6: Payday lending. Consumer Action has prepared a submission to the Victorian Government’s Small Amount Cash Lending Inquiry. We have also prepared a draft literature review as part of our ongoing project examining payday lending in Australia. We argue that most payday lending exacerbates rather than resovles consumers’ debt problems.
16/6: Have your say! The ACCC is currently investigating the proposed acquisition of St George Bank Limited (St George) by Westpac Banking Corporation (Westpac). Given the stong consumer element of the proposed acquisition, the ACCC is seeking to encourage greater consumer involvement in its market inquiries process in the course of its investigation of this matter. Consumer Action encourages consumers to complete the survey which can be downloaded here. Closing date 23 June 2008.
11/6: Keeping Australia’s consumer protections up to date. Consumer Action has released a report, The consumer protection provisions of the Trade Practices Act 1974: Keeping Australia up to date. The comprehensive report examines Australia’s consumer protection framework in light of international developments. It makes a number of recommendations that advance the interests of consumers and a well functioning competitive market to ensure Australia’s consumer protection framework is world’s best. The report complements the recent final report from the Productivity Commission’s Review of Australia Consumer Policy Framework.
5/6: Motor Finance Wizard. Consumer Action has launched proceedings against Motor Finance Wizard in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Read our media release.
Fair Go on Fees
Join our campaign against unfair, excessive and unlawful penalty fees charged by Australian bank
May 2008
29/5: Motor Finance Wizard. Consumer Action is continuing our campaign against unfair motor car trading practices. Click here for more information.
29/5: The latest edition of Consumer Action’s e-bulletin, consumer interaction, is now available.
28/5: Maths software litigation. Consumer Action has instituted legal proceedings in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal against Addsup Education trading as Australian Institute of Mathematics Victoria and Lombard Finance. Read our media release.
15/5: Direct debit arrangements. Consumer Action has long been concerned about unfair terms in direct debit contracts. We recently obtained a favourable outcome for a client, a mother of two young children, who purchased self defence classes for her children from Albion Self Defence Academy using a DebitSuccess direct debit contract. The consumer was being pursued by DebitSuccess for a debt of almost $1,500 for classes that were not provided. Read our full media release for details.
April 2008
21/4: Motor car trading. Consumer Action has received a number of complaints from consumers about the practices of Motor Finance Wizard, a licensed motor car trader in Victoria. Motor Finance Wizard also operate in NSW and Queensland. We have published three fact sheets to provide information to consumers about the practices Motor Finance Wizard. Our fact sheets are :
- What tricks does Motor Finance Wizard use on car buyers?
- Does Motor Finance Wizard charge too much?
- Motor Finance Wizard – the experiences of Consumer Action clients
We encourage consumers to read these fact sheets should they have any dealings with Motor Finance Wizard.
16/4: Home building warranty insurance. Consumer Action has provided evidence to a Senate Economics Committee Inquiry into Mandatory Home Building Warranty Insurance. We have long been concerned that mandatory home building warranty insurance offers little or no protection for consumers, yet comes at significant cost. This Inquiry gave us the opportunity to present our concerns and case work experience to the Committee. Click here to read a transcript of evidence from the Inquiry hearing and here for a copy of our submission.
10/4: On the Wire. The latest edition of On the Wire, Consumer Action's regular newsletter on community sector involvement and interest in the national energy market, is now available. To subscribe, please email info@consumeraction.org.au with 'On the Wire' in the subject line.
9/4: Unfair contract terms. Consumer Action has launched litigation in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal against Debit Success (a company that organises direct debit agreements) and the Albion Self Defence Academy. We are arguing that a term of the contract that requires a consumer to pay for 12 months of self defence classes that were never used is unfair pursuant to the unfair contract term provisions of the Fair Trading Act 1999. Read our media release here.
March 2008
27/3: Telecommunications fees & charges survey. Researchers from Griffith University’s Centre for Credit and Consumer Law are conducting a study of fees and charges imposed by telecommunication providers, including mobile phone, landline and internet. They would like to hear from people who have had experience of fees and charges with these services, through an anonymous online survey. Comments and survey results will be published in a research report, and reported anonymously. You can access the survey by clicking here.
15/3: World Consumer Rights Day – Consumer Action releases policy plan for 2008. Consumer Action has publicly released its Policy Plan 2008, which sets out our policy and campaign priorities for the year. You can also read our media release launching the plan here.
13/3. Competition in the grocery market. Consumer Action has provided a submission to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s, Inquiry into the effectiveness of competition in the grocery sector. Our submission provided evidence about consumer behaviour in the grocery market, the pricing practices of supermarkets and the benefits of a national unit pricing system, and the role of regulators in facilitating effective competition.
12/3: Concessions Count. Consumer Action has joined the Affordable Living Alliance, a coalition of community agencies concerned about rising costs of energy and water and the risk of cuts to government concessions. The Alliance has called on the Victorian Government to increase concession amounts and uncap currently capped concessions in the 2008-09 budget to ease the hardship faced by Victorian households. Keep an eye on the Affordable Living Alliance web page for further updates about the campaign.
11/3: Housing affordability. In a submission to the Federal Government, Consumer Action has strongly supported the proposed introduction of First Home Saver Accounts. In our view, the proposed accounts are an innovative solution to some of the problems rising housing prices have caused Australian consumers. Despite this, our submission has raised a number of concerns about the regressive nature of the proposed accounts, in that they will benefit high-income earners more than low-income earners. We’ve asked for the government contributions to the accounts to be amended, so that they operate equitably.
1/3: Private car parks. Consumer Action continues to campaign against the unfair business practices of private car parks. In letters to Australian National Car Parks Pty Ltd and Care Park Pty Ltd, we have argued that the issuing of payment notices is unfair to consumers and may be unlawful. We have suggested the car parks install boom gates at car park entrances, so consumers do not inadvertently park without a ticket. Read our media release.
February 2008
29/2: The latest edition of Consumer Action’s ebulletin, consumer interaction, is now available.
29/2: Finance broking. Consumer Action has claimed that finance broker Sample & Partners is flouting Federal Court orders. In May 2007, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission obtained orders that Sample & Powers engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by making claims that if consumers switched loans, they would be able to pay off their home loan sooner, without explaining that this would require extra repayments. The court orders required that Sample & Partners consider and respond to consumers’ applications for compensation. However, the orders are not working for consumers who have suffered loss. Read our full media release.
24/9 SCAMS TARGET YOU! Protect yourself! Consumer Action is partnering with the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce in the two-week consumer fraud awareness campaign, “Fraud Fortnight”. Offers that sound to good to be true trick you into giving away your heart, your money, or your personal details. Seduction scams never deliver what you want. Our message for consumers is: if in doubt, don’t give out your details.
For more information about scams and how to protect yourself, visit Scamwatch
22/2: Energy market regulation. The Essential Services Commission is allowing energy retailers to impose a supply fee of up to $95 on consumers should their current retailer go bankrupt or leave the market. In a submission to the Essential Services Commission, we have argued that the fee should be removed – the fee not only inhibits competition, but is manifestly unfair as consumers will be charged for something for which they have no control. Read more in our media release.
14/2: Unit Pricing. Consumer Action has today called on the Federal Government to legislate for mandatory unit pricing in Australian supermarkets, to help Australian consumers deal with increasing cost of groceries. Read our full media release.
Unit pricing, which is compulsory throughout Europe and in several parts of the United States, requires supermarkets to provide price information for pre-packaged grocery items as an amount per standard unit (ie, litre, kilogram), in addition to the total price. Unit pricing can improve competition in the grocery market by improving the ability of consumers to make decisions about price.
In a submission to the consultation on the new national trade measurement system, Consumer Action has outlined the benefits of unit pricing for consumers and competitiveness in the grocery market. You can read our submission here.
December 2007
21/12: Privacy and credit reporting. Consumer Action has provided a submission to the Australian Law Reform Commission’s Review of Australian Privacy Law, focusing on the credit reporting provisions in the Privacy Act. We argue that the review must address weaknesses in the current complaints-handling system for credit reporting, and address concerns about the effectiveness of the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner as a regulator.
20/12: The December edition of Consumer Action’s newsletter, consumer interaction is now available.
November 2007
30/11: Rising energy prices. The Victorian Government has raised the price of standing contracts for energy and gas in Victoria by up to 17%. The price rise applies from 1 January 2008 and will mean households will pay an average of $160 per annum more for their energy bills. Consumer Action is concerned with the lack of transparency in the price setting process – the prices were negotiated by the Government and energy retailers without any public analysis of the underlying costs. You can read our media release here.
27/11: Do Not Knock – campaign update. Due to the overwhelming success of our campaign, we have re-printed the Do Not Knock stickers. To obtain a sticker, please send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to us. For more information about the campaign, go to Get involved in our campaigns.
23/11: Annual report. Consumer Action has released its inaugural Annual Report. The report outlines the establishment of Consumer Action, and details our work for the first year of operation. The feature ‘Working for change: casework and campaigning for action" highlights the integration of casework and campaigning at Consumer Action. You can download a copy of the 2006/07 Annual Report by clicking here.
23/11: Motor car trading – lemon laws. Consumer Action has prepared a submission to the Victorian Government’s consultation on motor vehicle lemon laws.
A lemon is a vehicle that continuously breaks down or is mechanically unsound. Despite consumer protections relating to product quality, many consumers are unable to obtain redress when they have purchased a lemon. Consumers who have purchased a lemon are commonly shunted between dealers, manufacturers and repairers when trying to enforce their rights, and often give up out of frustration. Lemon laws should ensure consumers who purchase a lemon have a concrete right to a refund or a replacement, rather than merely a repair.
Consumer Action strongly supports the establishment of motor vehicle lemon laws in Victoria. In our submission, we strongly argue that lemon laws should apply not only to new cars, but to used cars as well.
15/11: Do Not Knock – campaign update. We have been inundated with calls and emails about our Do Not Knock campaign. For more information about what you can do to support the campaign or to download a copy of the sticker, go to Get involved in our campaigns. Should your complaint be regarding unsolicited marketing telephone calls, please visit www.donotcall.gov.au or call 1300 792 958 to be included on the Do Not Call register.
15/11 Campaign and report launch. Consumer Action has today launched a campaign to assist consumers avoid door-to-door marketers if they wish to. The campaign distributes a Do Not Knock sticker, which warns sales representatives that they are in breach of the law if they knock on a door to which the sticker is affixed. Read a copy of our media release or download a copy of the sticker. Consumers can use the sticker to protect themselves from door-to-door marketers. To obtain a copy of the sticker, contact Consumer Action.
A case study report, Coercion and harassment at the door: Consumer experiences with energy direct marketers, is also launched as part of the campaign. The report, prepared by Consumer Action and the Financial & Consumer Rights Council details the stories of 28 consumers who have been lied to, taken advantage of or harassed when direct marketed by energy marketers. The report demonstrates that consumers are experiencing significant problems with marketers in the competitive energy market.
7/11: Get involved in our campaigns. Consumer Action has added a new page to our website - get involved in our campaigns! Currently, we're seeking your assistance with a campaign about unsolicited credit card limit increase offers. For more information, click here.
October 2007
17/10: Private car parks. Consumer Action has been contacted by consumers who have been “fined” by private car parks for failing to follow instructions to pay for parking. Private car parks do not have the statutory authority to issue fines, but are seeking payment for damages for breach of contract. If the payment sought is out of all proportion to the damage caused to car park by the failure of a consumer following parking instructions, then it may be a penalty and be unlawful.
Consumer Action has developed a fact sheet which includes a pro forma letter to assist consumers challenge the lawfulness of “fines” issued by private car parks. The fact sheet is for information purposes only. If you want legal advice about your particular situation, please contact our Consumer Legal Practice.
10/10: Consumer Action has given a number of presentations in public forums recently.
Paul Gillett, the Centre’s co-Director - Legal Practice, debated ABA CEO David Bell about penalty fees at the 2007 Credit Conference in Queensland. His paper, Debt before dishonour, is available for download.
Gerard Brody, the Centre’s Director – Policy & Campaigns, presented to the South Australian Financial Counsellors Association Conference on reckless lending. His presentation examined a range of poor lending practices, including inappropriate mortgage refinancing and fringe lending.
Catriona Lowe, the Centre’s co-CEO, presented at the 2007 Abacus Convention. Abacus is the peak body for credit unions and mutual building societies. Catriona’s presentation encouraged the Abacus members to examine their business practices and to align them with the interests of consumers.
1/10: Consumer policy. Consumer Action promotes consumer policy responses that recognise the reality of consumer behaviour and experience in markets. We continue to push Government and policy makers to consider the actual experience of consumers.
In July, in response to the collapse of a number of property debenture companies, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission released a consultation paper proposing a new approach to regulating higher risk debenture investments. In a submission to the consultation paper, Consumer Action has argued that complex and lengthy disclosure documents which detail risks might not sufficiently influence consumer decision-making. In the submission, Consumer Action welcomes ASIC's proposal to further regulate advertising of risky debenture investment products as an adjunct to better and more honest disclosure. We also argue that further investigations should be undertaken about the role of financial advisers in marketing risky investments.
September 2007
30/9: The September edition of Consumer Action's ebulletin, consumer interaction, is now available.
28/9: On the Wire. The latest edition of On the Wire, Consumer Action's regular newsletter on community sector involvement and interest in the national energy market, is now available. To subscribe, please email info@consumeraction.org.au with 'On the Wire' in the subject line.
17/9: Reckless lending. Consumer Action has welcomed the recommendations to reform credit regulation, released today by the House of Representatives Economic, Finance and Public Administration Committee into Home Loan Lending. Click here to read a copy of the media release.
4/9: More fees cut as campaign gains momentum. CHOICE and Consumer Action have welcomed NAB’s announcement today it will cut direct debit dishonour fees from $50 to $30 and will launch a new mainstream transaction account that allows consumers to avoid bank penalty fees altogether. Read our press release here.
4/9: Penalty fees. Continuing the success of our Fair Go on Fees campaign, Senator Steve Fielding has introduced a bill into the Senate which would ensure bank fees reflect a reasonable estimate of a financial institution’s loss, as well as empower the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to monitor and enforce the level of penalty fees. The bill has been referred to the Senate Economics Committee to report by 17 September 2007.
Consumer Action and CHOICE have provided a submission to the Committee. Our submission argues that a regulatory solution is required to deal with penalty fees, and should include a range of measures, such as empowering a regulator to investigate and publicly report on the level of fees. We continue to encourage consumers to reclaim unfair and potentially illegal penalty fees, by visiting www.fairfees.com.au.
August 2007
13/8: Consumer Action has released a research report, Water Reform in Victoria: Independent pricing regulation and its outcomes for consumers. The report finds that during the first water price review, water businesses did not adequately consult with their customers when setting prices for water. With the water businesses about to release their pricing proposals for the next five years, we are demanding that water businesses do more to ensure consumers can understand and respond to prices. Consumer Action recognises that prices will rise to pay for proposed supply augmentations (including a desalination plant), but argues that price rises should apply fairly and equitably across the customer base, and that water businesses must help their customers who cannot afford to pay. See our media release for further information.
5/8: Report launch. Consumer Action has released a research report, Vendor Terms - Rhetoric & Reality. Over recent years, we have seen vendor terms mortgages emerge as a way of marketing overpriced homes to predominately low-income consumers. Such mortgages can be particularly harmful as they often involve poor quality dwellings, high interest rates and misleading and unconscionable sales tactics. Our report makes a number of recommendations that aim to better regulate vendor terms mortgages, so that vulnerable consumers are not disadvantaged when entering the property market. Click here to access Appendix 2 and Appendix 3 of the report.
July 2007
18/7: Consumer Protections in National Energy Market. State, Territory and the Commonwealth Governments are currently negotiating a new consumer protection framework for the provision of electricity and gas through the Ministerial Council on Energy's Retail Policy Working Group. The new framework, likely to be implemented from 1 January 2009, will replace the Victorian Energy Retail Code and other jurisdictional regulations that currently ensure consumers have continued access to energy services. Consumer Action is generally supportive of a harmonised approach, but is keen to ensure that the strong consumer protections that operate in Victoria are retained.
Read our submission, and the attachment which includes our detailed comments on the recommendations made by the Retail Policy Working Group. We have also produced a comprehensive Comparison Table of consumers protections that currently operate in the various jurisdictions which includes our opinion of which jurisdiction has best practice. It is important that the new national regime reflects best practice, rather than the lowest common denominator.
9/7: Privacy and consumer regulation. Consumer Action Co-CEO Carolyn Bond gave a keynote spreech to a national privacy conference in Sydney last week, examining links between privacy and consumer regulation. Carolyn argued that privacy regulation is a consumer issue, and consumer regulation should be considered in the development of privacy laws.
June 2007
27/6 Australia deserves world-class consumer policy. Read Consumer Action’s submission to the Productivity Commission inquiry into Australia's consumer policy framework. Australia has fallen behind international best practice and we need to update our framework to take account of significant market changes, new understandings about consumer behaviour and ways of achieving more effective regulation, while protecting disadvantaged consumers in particular.
19/6: Penalty Fees. Consumer Action and CHOICE have launched a nationwide Fair Go on Fees campaign. Reclaim unfair penalty fees charged by your bank, credit union or building society and write to the Government and Opposition to demand action on penalty fees. Go to www.fairfees.com.au, click on the logo at the top of the page or go to CHOICE and follow the link to go to the Fair Fees campaign site. You can also read our joint media release.
8/6: The latest edition of On the Wire, Consumer Action's newsletter about the community sector's interest in the national energy market (NEM), is now available. This edition includes an update on the latest regulatory developments in the NEM as well as consumer-based research, advocacy and analysis.
1/6: Payday and fringe lending. Consumer Action gave a presentation to payday and fringe lenders at a conference on the Gold Coast last weekend, asking the lenders to consider whether the practices we see in their industry are fair, honest or efficient or could be considered responsible. View our presentation.
May 2007
21/5: Energy Efficiency. The Victorian Government is establishing a new energy efficiency initiative, called the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET). VEET will require energy retailers to engage in energy efficiency activities in residential households. Consumer Action strongly supports improved energy efficiency measures – they should help prepare Victoria for a carbon-constrained future, as well as reduce the overall cost of energy bills for Victorian households. In our submission, we argue that VEET should prioritise low-income and tenanted households, who generally miss out from other energy efficiency initiatives, such as rebates. In particular, targeting private tenants will assist in overcoming the current poor incentives for landlords to implement energy efficiency measures.
11/5: Penalty Fees. Australians continue to be charged unfair, excessive and unlawful penalty fees by Australian banks and other financial institutions. Consumer Action and CHOICE have written to the Australian Bankers Association and Abacus-Australian Mutuals demanding that their members take action now to put a stop to these charging practices. Read our media release.
Increased disclosure and information to consumers about penalty fees being charged, as proposed today by the Australian Bankers Association, is welcome as its own initiative, but if it is intended to address our concerns it misses the point. Penalty fees are unfair and probably unlawful not because they are hidden, but because they are out of all proportion to the underlying costs they are purporting to recover. In addition, learning's from the psychology and behavioral economics fields tell us that people aren't very good at calculating the effect of things that might or might not happen in the future when making financial decisions now, so tend not to take such information into account. This means that giving consumers more information almost certainly won't work to drive competition to reduce penalty fees.
8/5: National Energy Market. Australia is currently in the middle of some of the most significant reforms ever made to our electricity and gas markets. Australia's eastern seaboard States and SA have agreed to hand over the regulation of their energy markets to a national regulator. The Ministerial Council on Energy, through a Retail Policy Working Group, is currently developing the regulatory framework for the new national energy market.
Consumer Action has made a number of submissions to this process. We support the move to a national energy market but are very concerned that appropriate consumer protections are retained. Regulation should be targeted at ensuring the best market outcomes for consumers and the community as a whole, not just the energy businesses, especially as electricity and gas are essential services.
Our latest submission addresses the proposed overall objectives for the new framework, as well as the proposed role for the national regulator in enforcement and compliance. We're concerned that the proposed objective for the new national framework is too narrowly focused on efficiency, without any concern for who benefits from the gains of efficiency. This would remove the facilitating objectives that currently exist in Victoria, which allow the Victorian regulator to ensure that low-income and vulnerable consumers also benefit from competition and efficiency gains. The proposed objective also takes no account of other legitimate social and environmental objectives.
3/5: Fringe lenders. It seems like business is booming for consumer finance businesses that specialise in lending to marginal borrowers - consumers on lower incomes who have difficulty getting credit from mainstream lenders. Investment opportunities in several of these businesses have been featured in the Australian press recently, particularly the Australian Financial Review.
Consumer Action thinks that the public should be fully informed of the nature of the techniques used by these businesses before deciding whether to invest in them. We produced this opinion piece, together with the Micah Law Centre, which anyone concerned about ethical investing should read - it may not have been published in the newspaper, but we thought it was worth publishing on our website.
Scams Target You: Protect Yourself. Visit SCAMwatch, the website of the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce, to learn more about how to recognise, report and protect yourself from scams
April 2007
30/4: The April edition of Consumer Action's ebulletin, consumer interaction is now available.
17/4: Credit Reporting. Consumer Action has been waiting almost a year for the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner to respond to two representative complaints we have made about credit reporting that we believe affect at least half a million Australians. The complaints relate to old alleged Telstra debts sold to debt collection firm Alliance Factoring and then listed on individuals' credit information files held by credit reporting bureau Veda Advantage. Read our media release about our serious concerns over the delay.
We have also provided information on this and other concerns about Australia's credit reporting system to the Australian Law Reform Commission's current review of the Privacy Act 1988. Read our submission (with attachments 1, 2, 3, and 4).
March 2007
27/3: Consumer Action supports the campaign by Australians for Affordable Housing. Read our media release in support.
26/3: Scams Target You: Protect Yourself. March is Scams Awareness Month. This week the focus is: Scams target you: Protect your identity. Visit the SCAMwatch website to learn more about how to recognise, report and protect yourself from scams.
23/3: The latest edition of On the Wire, Consumer Action's newsletter about the community sector's interest in the national energy market (NEM), is now available. This edition includes an update on the latest regulatory developments in the NEM as well as consumer-based research, advocacy and analysis.
20/3: Consumer Action was well-represented on the program of the National Consumer Congress held in Melbourne last week. On World Consumer Rights Day, 15 March 2007, Consumer Action co-CEO Catriona Lowe presented a Speech in the day's leading session - an in-depth discussion of the current Productivity Commission inquiry into Australia's consumer policy framework. Later in the day, co-CEO Carolyn Bond conducted a session on Cutting the red tape: effective consumer regulation.
19/3: Scams Target You: Protect Yourself. March is Scams Awareness Month. This week the focus is: Scams target you: Protect your computer.
13/3: Scams Target You: Protect Yourself. March is Scams Awareness Month. This week the focus is: Scams target you: Protect your phone.
5/3: Scams Target You: Protect Yourself. Consumer Action is participating in a Scams Awareness Month, a campaign of the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce. This week the focus is: Scams target you: Protect your money.
February 2007
28/2: The February edition of Consumer Action's ebulletin, consumer interaction is now available.
28/2: Consumer Action has publicly released its Policy Plan 2007, which sets out our policy and campaign priorities for the year. You can also read our media release launching the plan here.
26/2: Consumer Action is starting a new campaign targeting unfair, excessive and unlawful bank penalty fees. Read our 2004 report lifting the lid on these fees here. We will be working with Choice, the Australian Consumers’ Association – see the Choice website to find out more about account penalties and how to avoid them, and credit card penalties and how to pay less.