It is a pleasure to rise and speak on the Consumer Legislation Amendment Bill 2025. In my notes to start off I had to thank the minister for all of his work on this legislation coming forward, but I did not have in there to thank the Greens political party for the work that they have done.
This side of the house has done the most incredible amount of reforms in the housing space, in the renter space and now also with this legislation supporting Victorians in the cost-of-living challenges we have at the moment with the fuel saving app. There has been an absolutely incredible amount of work that this government has done on this side of the house. I am really proud to be part of the government that is doing the policy work that makes a difference on the ground for Victorians, particularly those in the electorate of the Bellarine.
As regional MPs in this place we do quite a few k’s in regional Victoria, and as we travel around we do not always have service stations as readily available as maybe those in Melbourne might have. We are driving to drop the kids off at school, we might be running a small business, we are going to work and seeing family and friends, and all of that running around adds up when you go to the bowser. We know that it can cost quite a bit to fill up your car, and that is why we are making this fairer by having our fair fuel plan.
We have already delivered the first phase of this plan: we have launched the Servo Saver in the Service Victoria app. I have opened it. I have used it. I am a bit of a creature of habit and I usually go to the same service station each time, but I am fairly confident that they are the cheapest in my region as I am going to work or moving around the Bellarine.
The app actually has confirmed this, and the app has shown me where I can make those savings each time I go to the bowser. I had a look at the app this morning, and there was a 20-cent difference across the Bellarine. If you travelled from one side to the other, you could find a difference, and that makes a difference to when you go to fill up – hence it also means you are saving money.
For the first time, fuel retailers in Victoria will now be required by law to report their fuel prices in real time, and it will be an offence if they fail to make those changes within 30 minutes. This is making sure that you have reliable information that is transparent, accurate and live across all the service stations in the state. This is where you can see where you can get the best deal in your area and make choices.
The real savings have been modelled. I have heard about not having modelling and things like that, which is ridiculous. They have found that motorists who shop around and then fill up at the lowest point can save over $300 a year, and that is a lot of money for a family. That is money back in the pockets of families and drivers, and that is what this Servo Saver is designed to do. This is to align also with other states and territories that have similar mandatory fuel price reporting schemes. Victorians are no longer missing out, and we can do this now here in Victoria.
There is another phase to come, though. We will go even further, as we are going to introduce a daily fuel price cap. That is really to bring fairness, transparency and predictability to fuel costs. Under this new legislation, fuel retailers will be required to report their maximum price for the following day, and that price will be published at 4 pm. From 6 am the next day it becomes the maximum cap for the 24-hour period.
From that moment that is the most it can be, and it can only go down, so retailers will not be able to hike prices during the day. We have all experienced that – where you can be driving around and it was one price in the morning, and you go past at lunchtime or in the afternoon and it is a different price again, and it can be significantly different. This will allow people to plan ahead. You can check your area wherever you are driving, and you do not get any of those nasty surprises or curse yourself when you drive past and say, ‘I wish I’d filled up earlier in the morning.’
This will be backed up with some penalties, because we want to make sure that this is fair and accountable, and those who fail to comply can face fines as well. The fuel price cap is scheduled to commence next year, marking another big step in our government’s commitment to supporting and backing Victorians and putting people first. It is a sensible reform, it is practical and it is about delivering those savings, as I have explained. We are making sure our policies make a difference on the ground.
The second part of this bill amends the Residential Tenancies Act 1997. This is another suite of rental reforms that we have introduced in this place. This is the 150th rental reform, about making things fairer for renters. I certainly have been a renter in the past, and I have had incredible, supportive and responsive landlords, and it has been a great relationship that I have had with my landlords. But not everyone has that same relationship, either as a renter or a landlord. I think when that relationship is good, it goes really well, but if it is not good, then it can also go horribly wrong.
This is a landmark reform also, where we are going to initiate and address the issue of double bonds. For too long – and it has been quite a stressful situation for many – when moving house you needed to pay the new bond before your old one might have been released or returned, and that can obviously build up to quite a significant amount of money. That is something this bill is going to fix. Under the reforms this is going to affect quite a number of Victorians who rent across our state.
They are not going to have to find those thousands of dollars. We know that moving is stressful enough – I have done it a few times – and when you are packing boxes and changing schools or you are having to adjust to a new move, this should be one less thing you need to worry about. It is going to ease that financial burden and emotional strain on renters.
I have talked a little bit about the benefit for renters, but this also benefits the rental providers as well, the landlords, because this is a win for them as well. It will mean spending less time managing that bond paperwork and a bit of peace of mind that the bond is guaranteed by the Victorian government under this scheme. It will be administered through the Secretary of the Department of Government Services.
With the government acting somewhat as a guarantor for those transfers of bonds and any claims that are made, we can ensure that the scheme runs smoothly for both the landlord and the renter. Renters simply will need to meet the eligibility criteria. They will pay a small administration fee and cover any shortfall if their new bond is higher than the old one.
This is going to look fairly familiar to rental providers. For new rental providers, they will be notified of that bond transfer and lodge a bond lodgement with the authority, as they do now. When there is a claim on the first bond, once it is agreed to by the renter or determined by VCAT, the government can step in to pay it. If a renter then owes money to the state as a result, there are options to have multiple repayment options, ensuring that there are those hardship guidelines in place and that renters are treated fairly and given the time and support that they need.
Once these laws are passed, we will continue to work on finalising the online portable bond scheme, as I have indicated, for next year. This is making sure that there will be transparency and accountability, and the Minister for Consumer Affairs will review the operation of this scheme within three years of its commencement and also table a report in Parliament. It means that we can then, as we do with lots of legislation, review it, track it, see if it is working as intended and make sure it is delivering as we have promised. That is really about making a simpler, fairer and more affordable renting experience for Victorians.
I have talked a little bit today about what this bill will do. It is about standing with renters. It is about fairness. It is about a system that is going to work for everyone. I have talked about the fuel saving scheme as well and the Servo Saver app. This is about making sure it is easier and fairer for drivers and families who are watching their family budget and watching their spend. This is going to make sure they have money coming back into their pockets. The reforms that we do in this place are significant, and the reforms that we do clearly show that we are always on the side of Victorians. I commend the bill to the house.
