Motor Trader Dec 18 / Jan 19

Policy/Viewpoint
KELLIE DEWAR
DEPUTY GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE
GENERAL MANAGER MEMBER SERVICES
THIS VIEWPOINT HAS dual
disposition - it is the last for 2018
and the first for 2019. The priority
is to wish each of you a joyful Christmas
and a New Year that brings prosperity
and all that you aspire.
The year is ending with a rush
of activity, and that is before the
commencement of the festive season.
I’m in the throes of winding up issues
arising from the Annual General Meeting
(AGM), including the final lodgement of
the approved Rule changes, gearing up
for a Board meeting in early December,
finalising a policy submission and
preparing next year’s schedule which is
shaping up to be very busy.
The State Strategic Plan 2016-18 is
being reviewed so that its goals and
initiatives continue to reflect the
service obligations to members in a
digital economy and the technical and
digital transformations underway in the
automotive value chain. In my area, I’m
considering ways to increase interactions
between the membership and our
corporate partners so that members are
fully informed of the benefits open to
them as members of MTA Queensland.
ADVOCACY
The policy issue that is preoccupying
the mind now, and will be a significant
matter in the coming year, relates to
Australian Consumer Law with the
focus on ‘lemon laws’ and ‘warranties’.
At a recent sitting of the Queensland
Parliament, the Queensland Civil and
Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) and other
Legislation Amendment Bill (the Bill) was
introduced. It included the extension of
QCAT’s jurisdiction for motor vehicle
related claims under the Fair Trading Act
1989 and the Motor Dealers and Chattel
Auctioneer Act (MD&CA) 2014 from $25,000
to $100,000.
The policy intent derives from a 2017
state election undertaking to improve
consumer rights in relation to ‘lemon
vehicles’. We recognise that, and also that
Ministers for Consumer Affairs’ at their last
meeting agreed to increase the threshold
in the Australian Consumer Law definition
of ‘consumer’ from $40,000 to $100,000.
The quantum had remained unchanged
since 1986. In the New Year, we’ll present
a submission to the Parliamentary Legal
Affairs and Community Safety Committee
(LA&CSC).
The Department of Justice and Attorney
General’s Office of Regulatory Policy
had consulted us on the revisions to the
MD&CA Act. This related primarily to the
reinstatement of the statutory warranty for
used vehicles more than 10 years old with
more than 160,000 on the odometer (Class
B statutory warranties) and repealed in
Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act
2000. We did not oppose the return of
Class B statutory warranties, recognising
that it was an election obligation; reduced
‘red tape’ and had beneficial business
benefits. At the time of the original change,
we believed that Australian Consumer
8 | Motor Trader December 2018/January 2019