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The Government is seeking comment on an options paper it released today to address unfair terms included in insurance contracts.
The paper was released by the Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law, Chris Bowen. It sets out a number of possible options to deal with the potential for unfair terms in insurance contracts. These suggestions include reforms to the Insurance Contracts Act 1984.
Bowen said that the new legislation provides further protections for individual consumers affected by unfair terms in contracts that deal with the acquisition of goods or services (which includes financial services). But he added that the Insurance Contracts Act limits the availability of remedies in other legislation about insurance contracts.
“The passage of the Australian Consumer Law and the related amendments to the ASIC Act through the Senate is an important step in providing the credit regulator, ASIC, with the ability to be able to bring actions on behalf of consumers against unfair terms in credit contracts — including mortgages and transaction accounts,” said Bowen.
