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Conclusion

older people face a broad range of financial and consumer issues. Some issues are specific to their stage in life, such as pension entitlements, superannuation related issues and investment planning and advice. Others are not dissimilar to the problems faced in the market by all consumers of goods and services, but reflect an increased vulnerability of older people (e.g. credit and debt, consumer fraud and scams, door-to-door sales, pre-paid funerals).

There are many different avenues for older people to obtain help in dealing with financial and consumer problems, and in lodging formal complaints and appeals. Common features of industry dispute-resolution schemes include that they are free for consumers, and that they are generally binding on the service provider, but not on the consumer. The complexity of the procedures for lodging complaints varies from body to body. The ability to lodge complaints orally, or alternatively, the availability of complaint body staff who can facilitate the lodging of formal complaints, or the completion of complaint forms, is an important access to justice issue for older people.

Another common feature of dispute resolution schemes is that potential complainants are required to attempt to resolve the matter directly with the service supplier before approaching the independent body. While it is not unreasonable to expect consumers to try and resolve a complaint directly before elevating the matter to a formal complaint body, this requirement may in itself create a psychological barrier for many older people.¹²¹

The informality of procedures in many tribunals does not remove the need for individual complainants to be able to argue and negotiate on their own behalf. This ability may be even more critical where procedures involve formal hearings or conciliation conferences. While legal representation is generally regarded as not essential for the Social Security Appeals Tribunal, the Veterans Review Board and the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal, an older person may be significantly disadvantaged by not having representation. Allowing an older person the right to be represented in hearings and conciliation may assist in overcoming imbalances in power and in negotiation skills.

Even where they would be willing to complain or take action, older people also tend to be less aware of the existence of avenues of appeal.¹²² The fact that many complaint and appeal mechanisms rely on web-based information compounds the problems faced by older people in becoming aware of their rights of appeal. Hard-copy information such as pamphlets and posters, appropriately distributed and displayed in organisations and agencies frequented by older people, would provide a more useful method of disseminating such information.