Fiona Willan reports for Nine News.
As a case worker for financial abuse victims, she’s seen and heard some terrible things.
She says: “We helped a client who’s partner had coerced her to take out a car loan for his benefit because of his poor credit rating. And her partner took the car and left her with a $50 000 debt.”
And she’s deeply concerned about the federal government’s plans to make it easier for people to get credit. She’s not alone.
Labor Senator Jenny McAllister says: “They are winding back protections that play an important role in supporting victims of domestic violence and protecting them.”
In a submission to treasury, legal experts and consumer advocates have described it as: “the most short-sighted, poorly thought out policy proposed by a government in credit or financial services in recent memory”.
Opdam says: “We’ll see more people experiencing financial abuse with bigger debts and more complex legal problems.”
Watch the full story here (Nine News, 10 January 2021).