Oceania: Consumer Protection

When equipment is hired out but later damaged, hire businesses face a familiar challenge: who says the equipment wasn’t already faulty, who bears the risk, and can the hirer recover the cost of repair? The NSW Supreme Court’s decision in Civiltrak Sydney Pty Ltd v Orange Equipment Pty Ltd t/as Orange Hire offers valuable guidance to solving this puzzle.

We recently examined how fraud can undermine indefeasibility and the resulting risks for lenders. You can read that article here: Indefeasibility of title - legal certainty in an age of rising fraud. This article analyses the High Court of Australia’s decision in Stubbings v Jams 2 Pty Ltd [2022] HCA 6, which remains the leading authority on responsible lending practices, notwithstanding the passage of four years since judgment.

Welcome to the first in our series of articles on the Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026 and its 3 related bills (ACP Bill package), a proposed reform intended to establish a new aviation consumer protection framework in Australia.

APRA and ASIC have released their 2026–27 Corporate Plans, signalling more intensive supervision and enforcement, alongside targeted measures intended to reduce unnecessary regulatory burden. Their priorities span operational resilience, cyber security, artificial intelligence, consumer protection, insurance, superannuation, market integrity and digital assets. For regulated entities, the plans provide a practical roadmap of the areas most likely to attract supervisory attention, information requests and, where deficiencies are identified, enforcement action.

Trauma insurance, also known as critical illness insurance, provides a financial safety net for policyholders diagnosed with specific serious medical conditions. However, a significant issue undermining the efficacy of trauma insurance in Australia is the reliance on outdated medical definitions. Outdated medical definitions in Insurance policies can lead to denied claims and unmet expectations, creating substantial legal and consumer challenges.

ASIC's Report 838 reveals significant transparency gaps in motor vehicle insurance premium communications, finding that renewal documents often fail to explain price changes adequately and that over 30% of consumers who contacted their insurer successfully negotiated lower premiums. The report establishes clear expectations for better practice in pricing disclosures and signals continued regulatory scrutiny of insurance pricing practices.

Understanding how long unpaid debts remain on Australian credit reports is crucial for managing financial reputation and planning recovery from financial difficulty. This comprehensive guide examines retention periods for defaults, court judgments, bankruptcy information, and other credit listings, while explaining the regulatory framework that governs credit reporting in Australia.

When a borrower defaults on a loan, does the lender have an immediate right to repossess property or force a sale? This article examines the negotiation options available to borrowers after loan default, the statutory protections under the National Credit Code, and the enforcement rights and obligations of lenders under Queensland's Property Law Act 2023.

A possession claim is a court proceeding brought by a lender seeking possession of mortgaged property after a borrower defaults on their loan obligations. In Queensland, possession proceedings are governed by a combination of the mortgage contract, the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld), the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), and, for regulated consumer loans, the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth) and National Credit Code.

Queensland's new Reportable Conduct Scheme, effective July 1, 2026, establishes comprehensive obligations for organizations working with children to investigate and report allegations of abuse or neglect. Schools, childcare centers, and other entities must navigate strict reporting timelines, procedural fairness requirements, and potential penalties for non-compliance.

Investigations are stressful – for everyone involved. So it’s no surprise the NSW Industrial Relations Commission has held that there are inherent psychosocial risks involved in the investigation process. In a recent decision affirming the validity of two improvement notices issued to the Department of Education by SafeWork NSW, the Commission reminds employers of their duty to identify and mitigate those risks, and the consequences when they don’t.

Parenting orders under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) (“the Act”) determine post separation living arrangements for a child, allocation of parental responsibility, and may include orders about education, such as which school a child/ren should attend. Courts have emphasised that parents must take positive action to ensure children spend time with or live with each parent in accordance with parenting orders.