We were recently reviewing ASIC’s RG209, which sets out the steps you can take to minimise the risk of non-compliance with these obligations, when we spotted the following note on ASIC’s URL:

Note: On 25 September 2020, the Government announced proposed reforms to the responsible lending obligations contained in Chapter 3 of the National Credit Act. The proposed reforms will amend the obligations that apply before entry into a credit product or the provision of credit assistance. ASIC’s guidance relating to the current responsible lending obligations will be reviewed and updated when the proposed reforms are finalised.

We have noticed, and perhaps it’s just us, a softening from our Credit Providers of their requirements from a responsible lending perspective, which without these changes, makes us uncomfortable that we are not always complying with the guidance in RG209, particularly around taking steps to verify.

With politicians returning to parliament for the Spring sittings, usually between August and December, we remain hopeful that these reforms, announced 3 years ago, will progress and we see a simplification of these obligations.

We will keep you updated here as this progresses.

For more information, contact the team by emailing info@creditcomply.com.au.