Sharon Cook, EGM NAB
National Australia Bank and its subsidiary Advantedge are defending proceedings bought by ASIC that it failed to respond to debtors’ hardship notices as required by the National Credit Code.
ASIC alleges NAB did not give some NAB customers, within 21 days after receiving the NAB hardship notice, a notice under s 72(2) of the Code requiring the NAB customer to give specified information and also that NAB did not give the NAB customer a NAB response notice at any time before commencement of these proceedings.
In some cases this means NAB failed to fulfil its hardship obligations for many years.
“By failing to give those customers the required notice under s 72(4), NAB and AFSH failed to properly inform them about the decision in relation to their hardship notice, and to advise them about their rights under the AFCA scheme” ASIC alleged in its concise statement filed with the Federal Court.
“It is reasonable to expect that this may have compounded the difficulty and vulnerability faced by those customers.”
The proceedings relate to the submission of hardship notices by 345 customers between October 2018 and September 2023.
NAB Group Executive, Customer & Corporate Services, Sharon Cook said NAB disclosed the issue to ASIC in October 2023.
NAB in a statement to the ASX admitted the alleged breaches.
“We’re sorry that this happened when a number of our customers were in difficult situations and needed us to be there for them,” Cook said.
“We are focussed on ensuring these customers receive the support they need.
“Following ASIC’s report into hardship practices across the industry, we have also been working on a new approach to supporting customers in financial difficulty. This includes consulting with consumer advocates.”
NAB said it and Advantedge “are now considering the detail of the proceedings brought by ASIC and will continue to cooperate fully with the regulator.”