Review of the Rural Financial Counselling Service
Submission to: Department of Agriculture
Related Projects
United Kingdom Consultation on the Buy Now, Pay Later industry
Submission to: HM Treasury, UK
Joint submission from the Consumer Action Law Centre and FCA to HM Treasury in the United Kingdom. The purpose is to share our experience of the Australian regulatory environment, where BNPL operates outside the credit laws that apply to other lending products. This is a similar situation to that in the UK. A key difference in Australia is that the industry here has developed a self-regulatory Code of Practice. The submission outlines the deficiencies with the Code and why it is not an substitute for adequate regulation, includes some observations about other aspects of the operation of BNPL in Australia and makes suggestions about the design of proportionate regulation. The submission is informed by the casework experiences of financial counsellors (called debt advisors in the UK) and consumer lawyers who are increasingly seeing clients who are experiencing various forms of harm when using the product.
Joint submission from the Consumer Action Law Centre and FCA to HM Treasury in the United Kingdom. The purpose is to share our experience of the Australian regulatory environment, where BNPL operates outside the credit laws that apply to other lending products. This is a similar situation to that in the UK. A key difference in Australia is that the industry here has developed a self-regulatory Code of Practice. The submission outlines the deficiencies with the Code and why it is not an substitute for adequate regulation, includes some observations about other aspects of the operation of BNPL in Australia and makes suggestions about the design of proportionate regulation. The submission is informed by the casework experiences of financial counsellors (called debt advisors in the UK) and consumer lawyers who are increasingly seeing clients who are experiencing various forms of harm when using the product.
Australian Banking Association Application for ACCC Authorisation re Financial Relief Programs April 2020
Submission to: ACCC
Joint consumer group submission (led by the Consumers Federation of Australia) in response to an application by the Australian Banking Association and its member banks, for authorisation by the ACCC for banks to agree on the minimum standards for consumer financial relief programs and to promote customers’ access to banking services in an environment where social distancing is in place. We support both of these applications. In relation to financial relief we suggest that the ACCC’s final authorisation require that banks consult with consumer groups about their content and that there be public reporting about the outcomes of these programs.
Joint consumer group submission (led by the Consumers Federation of Australia) in response to an application by the Australian Banking Association and its member banks, for authorisation by the ACCC for banks to agree on the minimum standards for consumer financial relief programs and to promote customers’ access to banking services in an environment where social distancing is in place. We support both of these applications. In relation to financial relief we suggest that the ACCC’s final authorisation require that banks consult with consumer groups about their content and that there be public reporting about the outcomes of these programs.