Responsibility: State and territory governments
Response:
TAS: Accept
ACT, NSW, QLD, SA, VIC, WA, NT: Accept in principle
Australian Capital Territory
Response: Accept in Principle
Status: In progress
What has been achieved to date
The ACT Public Trustee and Guardian fee fact sheet is on the ACT Public Trustee and Guardian website and is provided to clients when appropriate services are provided. The ACT Public Trustee and Guardian have also undertaken a fees and charges review and will review the recommendations and adopt as appropriate.
ACT government response July 2024
The ACT Public Trustee and Guardian publishes information about fees on its website. Fees are also included in budgets and account statements issued to clients. ACT Government policy is that fees and charges be reviewed every three years. The ACT Public Trustee and Guardian fees and charges are scheduled for review in the 2024 calendar year.
New South Wales
Response: Accept in principle
Status: In progress
What has been achieved to date
The NSW Trustee and Guardian are continuing work on its response to the recommendations of the Audit Office, including working to embed an activity-based costing model, which will be refined over time.
NSW government response July 2024
On 18 May 2023, the Audit Office of NSW released an independent assessment of whether NSW Trustee and Guardian is effectively delivering public guardianship and financial management services, which included recommendations about how NSW Trustee and Guardian could improve its processes to inform on actual costs of service delivery and identify and address cross-subsidisation. The NSW Trustee and Guardian have committed to a range of actions in response to the findings of the Audit Office report that are detailed in the report’s appendix.
Northern Territory
Response: Accept in principle
Status: In progress
What has been achieved to date
An Independent Financial Expert has been engaged in the Northern Territory to undertake a review of Public Trustee fees and charges.
NT government response July 2024
The Northern Territory will consider undertaking a review of public trustees’ fees and charges to determine fairness and equitability of the current pricing structure and any improvements required.
Queensland
Response: Accept in principle
Status: In progress
What has been achieved to date
In 2024, Queensland Public Trustee invited customers, stakeholders and the public to have their say on fee reforms proposed for the key services of financial administration, deceased estate administration and trust administration. Fee proposals are being progressed for Government’s consideration.
QLD government response July 2024
A comprehensive, independent review of Queensland Public Trustee's fees and charges was undertaken in 2022 and the findings from that review have informed recent public consultation on proposed fees and charges reform for key services. Feedback from the public consultation process is being considered and the Queensland Government will carefully explore any options arising from this process. The Queensland Government will consider this recommendation together with recommendations made in the Public Advocate’s Report: Preserving the Financial Futures of Vulnerable Queenslanders: A review of the Public Trustee’s fees, charges and practices.
South Australia
Response: Accept in principle
Status: Completed
What has been achieved to date
Current policies and practices in South Australia are consistent with this recommendation and has has been marked as complete.
The South Australian Attorney-General’s Department notes that an independent review has been conducted.
SA government response July 2024
The South Australian Public Trustee undertook an independent review of its fees and charges in 2023.
Tasmania
Response: Accept
Status: Completed
What has been achieved to date
The Office of the Tasmanian Economic Regulator (OTTER) report made 34 findings and 18 recommendations. As at the end of March 2024, significant progress has been made with 11 of 18 recommendations completed and a further 5 items in progress. Completing all the OTTER recommendations is a significant task and will take time to fully implement.
Updates on the Tasmanian Public Trustees actions taken in response to this review can be found on its public website.
TAS government response July 2024
The Tasmanian Government accepts this recommendation.
The Tasmanian Economic Regulator undertook an independent review of the Public Trustee’s fees and charges for those clients who are required by legislation to use its services.
Victoria
Response: Accept in principle
Status: Further work required
What has been achieved to date
The Victorian Government supports measures that help ensure that the fees and charges for professional administration services are fair and equitable.
In Victoria, where a person’s financial and property affairs are subject to an administration order, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal may appoint State Trustees, another trustee company, or another professional administrator, such as a lawyer, to act.
In this unique environment, the Victorian Government supports there being an appropriate framework for ensuring all professional administrators’ fees and charges are transparent, fair and equitable. State Trustees continues to review its fees and charges on a regular basis. Independent reviews are subject to future funding decisions.
VIC government response July 2024
We accept this recommendation in principle.
We support measures that ensure fees and charges for professional administration services are fair and equitable.
In Victoria, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal may appoint a trustee when a person’s financial and property affairs are subject to an administration order. The trustee may be the Victorian State Trustees, a trustee company, or another professional administrator, such as a lawyer.
We support an appropriate framework to ensure all administrators’ fees and charges are transparent, fair and equitable.
We will need to consider how to allocate responsibility for the proposed independent review.
This is because the current framework sits across 3 separate departments.
We will also need to consider the scope and funding of the independent review. This includes how to put the review’s recommendations into action.
Western Australia
Response: Accept
Status: In progress
What has been achieved to date
The review of the Public Trustee’s Fees and Charges is still underway with implementation of new fees and charges not anticipated until 2027.
WA government response July 2024
The WA Government accepts this recommendation with a review currently underway.
What the Disability Royal Commission said in the final report
State and territory governments should ensure that public trustees’ fees and charges have been independently reviewed since 2019. Where such a review has not been conducted since this time, state and territory governments should arrange a comprehensive review of the fees and charges payable by people under administration orders to the public trustee in their jurisdiction. The reviews should make recommendations to ensure fees and charges are fair and equitable for all people under administration orders.
More recommendations
View progress on other recommendations made by the Royal Commission.