Report - Consumers' Federation of Australia

1 August , 2018

Brokers need formal qualifications and on-the-job training, inquiry finds

Formal education provides a solid foundation for professional practice but alone does not give staff the skills, knowledge and behaviours needed to provide services competently, according to an inquiry undertaken by the Insurance Brokers Code Compliance Committee (the Committee). The inquiry found that staff needed to supplement their educational qualifications with on-the-job support and experience to develop…

12 July , 2018

Consumer advocates welcome ACCC Final Report on electricity market

Consumer advocates have welcomed the findings of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) Retail Electricity Pricing Inquiry Final Report, released yesterday. Energy Consumers Australia Acting CEO Lynne Gallagher said the final report confirms what consumers have been saying: that the electricity market is not working as it should and not delivering good value for…

4 May , 2017

Insurance Industry Must Act to Stamp Out Poor Investigation Practices

Financial Rights has today called on the general insurance industry to introduce a set of best practice standards for insurance investigations in its Code of Practice. This follows the release of the report titled Investigation of Claims and Outsourced Services by the insurance industry’s independent monitor – the General Insurance Code Governance Committee (CGC). The…

28 April , 2017

Consumer Advocates Respond to ACL Review

Consumer advocates have responded to the Australian Consumer Law Review conducted by Consumer Affairs Australia and New Zealand, noting some great wins for Australian consumers. Consumer Action Law Centre (CALC) CEO Gerard Brody said in a media release that there are some important changes on the horizon. ‘The Final Report proposes to make insurance contracts…

15 November , 2016

Gap in service: ACCAN and SACOSS release report on a lack of telecommunication services to low-income consumers

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) and the South Australian Council of Social Service (SACOSS) have collaborated to publish a report on telecommunications affordability. The report, titled Connectivity Costs: Telecommunications Affordability for Low-Income Australia was formed through over 500 surveys with Centrelink recipients and low-income Health Care Card Holders and multiple focus groups. The…

25 July , 2016

Productivity Commission launches ACL review: issues paper released

The Productivity Commission has recently launched a study into the enforcement and administration arrangements underpinning the Australian Consumer Law. The study will focus on the effectiveness of the ‘single-law, multiple regulator’ model – a model where the national consumer law is jointly enforced and administered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and…

24 May , 2016

OECD E-commerce guidelines – a step forward for consumers in the digital age

Robin Simpson, Consumers International’s Senior Policy Advisor discusses the recently revised OECD E-commerce guidelines and their implications for consumers. The OECD published its revised E-commerce guidelines at the end of March. They form a useful outline for any regulator that is developing work in this area and a good starting point for consumer groups that want to evaluate…

10 December , 2014