In June 2015 a $23m settlement was reached of two class actions launched by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers in 2013 in the Federal Court of Australia on behalf of Cash Converters customers in New South Wales who were alleged to have paid excessive fees and interest on short term loans.  The settlement is subject to court approval and is without admission [ More ]

 Do you have a fine?  Do you need a Tax File Number?  Do you need Legal advice?  Do you need help with your bills?  Do you need a new fridge or washing machine? Apply for a no interest loan! COME FOR A FEED AND A YARN WITH: ATO NSW Fair Trading State Debt Recovery O ce Financial Rights Legal Centre Centrelink Legal Aid [ More ]

Ian Ramsay, Paul Ali and Lucinda O’Brien have recently published an article on the credit repair industry in Australia entitled: ‘A Quick Fix? Credit Repair in Australia’.  The article appears in the current edition of the Australian Business Law Review (volume 43, number 3).  The article is an excellent addition to a growing conversation about consumer protection and financial difficulty [ More ]

Consumer advocacy groups have sent an informative and persuasive newsletter to all Federal parliamentarians with the aim of ensuring the upcoming review into payday lending regulations in the second half of 2015 is fair, independent and evidence-based. Read the Newsletter here: PaydayParliamentaryNewsletter As you read this, the attached newsletter is arriving in the mailboxes of every MP and Senator in Canberra. If you ever [ More ]

Consumer leases will continue to make the poor pay more:Consumer Groups Consumer Action Law Centre and Financial Rights Legal Centre say changes to Centrepay (Centrelink’s service that allows third parties deduct from payments) announced today by the Federal Government are a step in the right direction, but will achieve very little in protecting vulnerable Australians from the unfair costs and questionable behaviour of [ More ]