Western Australian Reviews

Consumer Protection produces and amends legislation, codes of practice, guidelines, and general consumer information. Where public comment is being invited for state legislation, draft copies of the documents are placed on this page. For national reviews visit the National Reviews page.

Current reviews

Proposed Amendments to Residential Tenancy Regulations

Release date: 3 April 2012
Closing date: 17 May 2012

The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2011 was passed by the Western Australian Parliament in November 2011. The Act will substantially amend existing tenancy obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act 1987.

The Act was the result of extensive research and consultation with landlords, tenants, real estate agents, peak associations and relevant Government agencies.

Before the new tenancy laws can be implemented, regulations to support these new laws need to be drafted.

The purpose of the Consultation Paper is to consult with key stakeholders on the more substantial Regulations.

The Consultation Paper addresses five key issues:

the content and form of the prescribed residential tenancy agreement;
the minimum content for mandatory property condition reports;
the amount of the capped option fee;
clarifying the minimum security obligations for residential rental premises; and
clarifying which urgent repairs should be considered essential services.

How to have your say

Comments and submissions are invited on the proposals outlined in this consultation paper [PDF]. Written comments, queries and submissions should be received no later than close of business on 17 May 2012.

Please provide your comments to:

The Director, Legislation and Policy
Consumer Protection Division, Department of Commerce
Locked Bag 14
Cloisters Square Perth 6850

Or by email to responses@commerce.wa.gov.au

Telephone enquiries should be directed to 1300 30 40 54.

At the conclusion of the consultation period, all responses received will be publicly available on this website. If you prefer your name to remain confidential, please indicate that in your submission. As submissions made in response to the paper may be subject to freedom of information requests, please do not include any personal or confidential information that you do not wish to become available to the public.

Past reviews

Proposals for the Regulation of Prepaid Funerals

CONSULTATION CLOSED

Release date: December 2011
Closing date: 6 March 2012

Your opinion is being sought on the proposed regulation of the prepaid funeral sector to ensure consumer’s money and investments are protected.

Prepaid funerals are not covered by specific legislation in WA. In this regard WA is out of step with the other jurisdictions which have enacted specific legislation as a result of consumer complaints and market failures, to regulate various aspects of the prepaid funerals sector. It is estimated that in Western Australia, around $24 million of consumers’ money is being held for prepaid funerals and it is anticipated that the amount will only increase as the population ages.

To facilitate discussion on this matter and to establish whether some form of regulation of the prepaid funerals sector is warranted, Consumer Protection has prepared a Consultation RIS and Discussion Paper. A previous consultation process conducted in 2006 resulted in a 2007 Final Report, which forms the basis for this Consultation RIS.

This paper canvasses five options:

Maintain the status quo.
Introduce a Code of Practice under the Fair Trading Act 2010 (FTA 2010) to implement the recommendations of the 2007 Final Report.
Introduce a Code of Practice under the FTA 2010 combining the 2007 Final Report recommendations and the Australian Funeral Directors Associations’ requirements.
Amend the informal funeral directors Code of Practice applied by the Metropolitan Cemeteries Board.
Introduce specific legislation for prepaid funerals.

How to have your say

Comments and submissions are invited on the proposals outlined in this Consultation RIS and Discussion Paper. Written comments, queries and submissions should be received no later than close of business on 6 March 2012.

Please provide your comments to:
The Director, Legislation and Policy
Consumer Protection Division, Department of Commerce
Locked Bag 14
Cloisters Square PERTH 6850

or by email noting “Prepaid Funerals submission” in the subject line.

Telephone inquiries should be directed to 1300 30 40 54

At the conclusion of the consultation period, responses received may be publicly available on this website. If you prefer your name to remain confidential, please indicate that in your submission. As submissions made in response to the paper may be subject to freedom of information requests, please do not include any personal or confidential information that you do not wish to become available to the public.

Compliance

This Consultation RIS and Discussion Paper has been assessed by the Department of Treasury's Regulatory Gatekeeping Unit (RGU) as following the Regulatory Impact Assessment Guidelines for Western Australia and meeting the requirements of the Western Australian Government's Adequacy Criteria. The Compliance Assessment notice from the RGU is available here.

Licensing of Strata Managers in Western Australia - Consultation Regulatory Impact Statement and Discussion Paper

CONSULTATION CLOSED

Release date: 31 October 2011
Closing date: 29 February 2012

Your opinion is being sought on the future of strata management in Western Australia.

Strata title is an increasingly popular form of ownership within the property market, currently accounting for over one-third of all forms of titles registered in Western Australia. Some strata owners self-manage while others employ the services of professional strata managers. Owing to the increased volume of properties being registered as strata title and the accompanying increase in the amount of strata funds held by strata managers, there have been some calls in recent years to license strata managers.

To facilitate discussion on this matter and to establish whether licensing or other form of regulation of strata managers is warranted, Consumer Protection has prepared a Consultation RIS and Discussion Paper. This paper canvasses three options.

Licensing strata managers under the National Occupational Licensing Scheme.
Regulating the conduct of strata managers without licensing.
Maintaining the status quo.

(More information on the proposed National Occupational Licensing System can be found at www.nola.gov.au)

Over the past decade, two Parliamentary inquiries and an independent review have been undertaken in relation to the regulation of strata managers in Western Australia. The reports of these inquiries and the review are below:

Public Administration Committee Report Standing Committee on Public Administration Report In Relation to the Inquiry into Western Australian Strata Managers September 2011
Economics and Industry Standing Committee Report Economics and Industry Standing Committee Inquiry into the Western Australian Strata Management Industry
2003
Stamford Report Department of Consumer and Employment Protection Review of Proposed Licensing/Regulation of Strata Title Managers Final Report June 2007

How to have your say

Please provide your comments to:
The Director, Strategic Policy and Development
Consumer Protection Division, Department of Commerce
Locked Bag 14
Cloisters Square Perth 6850

or by email to responses@commerce.wa.gov.au

Telephone inquiries should be directed to 1300 30 40 54 or (08) 9282 0804.

Compliance

This Consultation RIS and Discussion Paper has been assessed by the Department of Treasury's Regulatory Gatekeeping Unit as following the Regulatory Impact Assessment Guidelines for Western Australia and meeting the requirements of the Western Australian Government's Adequacy Criteria. The Compliance Assessment notice from the RGU is available here.