Narre Warren warmly received the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) Financial Fairness Roadshow, with local residents gathering to learn about AFCA’s important free, fair and independent financial dispute services.
As the one-stop-shop for consumers and small businesses with complaints about financial firms, AFCA spoke with more than 330 people on Thursday 10 October and heard about the financial issues faced in the area.
Financial advice and insurance were among the most common concerns raised with AFCA, whose jurisdiction includes complaints against banks, credit and insurance organisations, investments, financial advice and superannuation providers.
Local resident Jay said he was glad to receive face to face advice, in what can often be confusing territory to navigate.
“I was not aware of AFCA’s existence until I came down and spoke with the team. It’s really nice that there’s a face-to-face service and the team has given me confidence to follow up on an insurance matter,” he said.
AFCA chief ombudsman and chief executive officer David Locke said hearing from communities first-hand is an invaluable exercise to raise awareness of AFCA’s services and gather insights that help improve processes and drive industry change.
“AFCA was created as a one-stop-shop for people to gain free, fair and independent help with any complaints they have with financial providers, but in reality, most Australians don’t know that we exist.
“The roadshow sets out to change this and we’re striving to reach as many consumers and small businesses as we possibly can, because it’s important that all Australians feel confident in bringing their financial complaints forward.
“Every conversation had in Narre Warren contributed valuable insight that will ultimately help us drive change and ensure fairer outcomes for all Australians,” said Mr Locke.
The national roadshow will stop in over 80 metropolitan, regional and rural communities between September and April – from Burnie in Tasmania and Bendigo in Victoria, to Toowoomba in Queensland and Geraldton in Western Australia.
Next on the list is Frankston CBD, with nine locations remaining across Victoria.
In its first 10 months of operation, AFCA has received more than 16,550 financial complaints from Victorians and awarded over $37 million in compensation.
Nationwide, AFCA has received more than 60,687 financial complaints and awarded more than $144.7 million in compensation.
