Lenders are making it difficult to get help and more than one-third of people seeking assistance drop out of the process.
A new ASIC report says banks aren't doing what the law says they must do to help customers in trouble, as the number of borrowers in strife rises due to high interest rates, rocketing rents and increases in the cost of living.
"We found that in a number of respects, banks and other lenders are failing to live up to community expectations," said Australian Securities and Investments Commissioner Alan Kirkland.
So-called 'hardship provisions' and processes set out what lenders must do if customers are in financial difficulty.The vast majority of customers who request hardship assistance get it.
But the ASIC report found 40 per cent of customers who got assistance — through things like the reduction or deferral of payments — fell into arrears right after the assistance period ended.
The regulator's chair Joe Longo has tipped legal action against some of Australia's biggest names in finance over the failures.
"ASIC has made this a priority focus area, and where appropriate, we will not hesitate to take enforcement action to protect consumers," he said.
(*abc LOONK)
many posters recognised this would happen back in the pre- and post-covid periods when Morrison was encouraging new first home buyers to keep the bubble inflated.
So now Morrison's chickens are landing on the roof and crapping all over the many people who took out extreme mortgage loans when inflation was already rising and interest rates were going to rise.
why didn't Morrison back off? could it because he was the worst demagogic political leader we've had in over 80 years?
