Consumers' Federation of Australia

18 August , 2020

Young people facing debt tsunami as they borrow from their future to make ends meet

New consumer data released today by the Consumer Policy Research Centre (CPRC) investigates the experience of consumers during the three months from May to July and raises serious alarms about the debt tsunami facing young people (18-34) as they try to make ends meet during COVID-19. 70% of young Australians are now concerned about their…

17 August , 2020

National Scams Awareness Week: ‘This Is Not Your Life’

The ACCC has launched a podcast series for this year’s National Scams Awareness Week to provide Australians with tips on how to protect their personal and financial details from scammers. The five-episode podcast series, ‘This Is Not Your Life’, is produced by Julian Morrow, the creator of ABC TV’s consumer series The Checkout. The podcast,…

12 August , 2020

CFA Standards representative Elaine Attwood AM receives international award

Congratulations to Elaine Attwood AM as the joint winner of the ISO Simon Holland Award 2020, which is aligned with the ISO Excellence Award. It recognises her outstanding contribution to the work of ISO/TC 229 Nanotechnology in the previous year and acknowledges the input and support Elaine offered to the ISO/TC 229 community and her…

7 August , 2020

Superannuation trustees compensate members wrongly classified as ‘smokers’

Superannuation trustees that were classifying new members as ‘smokers’ by default and charging them higher life insurance premiums have ceased this practice, and some trustees have remediated members for the extra premiums paid. Between 2017 to 2020, ASIC engaged with seven superannuation businesses, (comprising nine superannuation trustees) that had been, either at the time or…

7 August , 2020

Consumers and COVID-19: from crisis to recovery

Today the Consumer Policy Research Centre (CPRC) released its June briefing for the Consumers and COVID-19: from crisis to recovery research initiative. With governments, regulators, business and the broader policy community challenged to provide sufficient support for consumers during the COVID-19 economic crisis and into recovery, CPRC’s research aims to: Better understand the impact that COVID-19 is having on…

4 August , 2020

Participate in the Country of Origin Food Labelling Consultation

The Federal Government has begun an evaluation of Australia’s country of origin food labelling system to make sure it’s working for Australian consumers. The evaluation of country of origin labelling for food will consider if the labels are helping consumers make more informed choices, as well as clarifying the origin claims that businesses can make,…

30 July , 2020

Standards and working from home

During this challenging time standards ensure that we can work from home safely and efficiently. Standards Australia developed these standards via technical committees whose members come from a range of stakeholders including Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA). Can you speak up for consumers as part of the CFA Standards Project to ensure that new standards…

29 July , 2020

ACMA moves to protect Australians from phone scams

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) today launched the next phase of its action plan to combat scams, unveiling a suite of new resources designed to help Australians protect themselves on their home and mobile phones from scams. Chair of the ACMA’s Scam Taskforce Fiona Cameron said scammers are using the COVID-19 pandemic to take advantage of…

22 July , 2020

Pregnancy warning label to be mandatory on alcoholic beverages

Australian and New Zealand consumers had a significant victory on 17 July 2020 when, by a majority vote, the Australian and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation decided that there should be a mandatory standardised pregnancy warning label on alcoholic beverages. There will be a 3 year implementation period. Currently, provision of a pregnancy…

13 July , 2020

New website of the Insurance Brokers Code Compliance Committee links consumers and insurance brokers

A website designed to empower consumers and help insurance brokers improve their service standards has been launched by the independent Insurance Brokers Code Compliance Committee (the Committee) that monitors compliance with the Insurance Brokers Code of Practice (the Code). It is an exciting development for the Committee, which works with consumer groups, regulators and Code subscribers to…

10 July , 2020

BCCC launches vulnerability, inclusivity and accessibility Inquiry

On 6 July 2020, the Banking Code Compliance Committee (BCCC) launched an Inquiry into Code-subscribing banks’ compliance with Part 4 of the Banking Code of Practice (the Code). The obligations under Part 4 of the Code are key consumer protections for disadvantaged customers and are particularly relevant as the community faces heightened challenges due to…

10 July , 2020

COVID job losses leading to people paying for junk insurance

Super Consumers Australia urges insurers to drop discriminatory policies that don’t protect the unemployed or people working limited hours. Super Consumers Australia has warned that the insurance industry will put approximately 343,000 people at financial risk if it doesn’t take action by the end of September. The warning comes after the Financial Services Council promised…