NCCPA (Small Amount Credit Contract and Consumer Lease Reforms) Bill 2009

Submission to: Attorney-General’s Department
Joint consumer group submission (led by Financial Rights Legal Centre) in response to proposed changes to the bankruptcy regulations. The submission argues that the proposed modernisation of the list of household property available for the payment of debts does not in fact represent modern lifestyles. Trustees in bankruptcy should not be taking household items from debtors and their families unless those items are uniquely valuable, such as antiques. Alternatively, if the Government does not accept this, the proposed list needs to expand to home entertainment equipment, sufficient computing devices for all members of the household and one mobile phone for each household member. Thresholds for tools of trade and motor vehicles should be set at reasonable values. Alternatively, they should be increased to $5,000 for tools of trade and $15,000 for motor vehicles (both should be indexed). The submission also makes recommendations about the duration of listings on the NPII and the regulation of informal debt agreements.