Financial Counselling

As part of our holistic service to clients, we offer financial counselling, education and advocacy for individuals and families - mainly Aboriginal people from Kununurra and surrounding communities - who are on low incomes and experiencing financial difficulties.

A financial counsellor can:

  • Help with financial safety planning and advice

  • Help you prepare a money plan to see what income/expenses/assets and debts you have.

  • Advise you on how to negotiate with creditors, ask for hardship, or complain that you do not owe some or all of the debt.

  • In some cases, negotiate payment plans or waivers with creditors on your behalf. A financial counsellor may help you ask to have your debt reduced or removed if it is the result of financial abuse. Some lenders and debt collectors have policies that help in situations of family violence.

  • Help you access your credit report to find out what debts you owe.

  • Plan a way to deal with your finances so you are in control and build long-term financial resilience.

  • Discuss whether you may be eligible for financial or community supports such as Centrelink income or special payments, housing support, food or energy vouchers, Victims Support Claims or early access of superannuation.

    Consumer Law

    Every day, people buy products and services - sometimes it's in a shop, other times it can be online and sometimes you might even have someone knocking on your door with special offers.

    Unfortunately, not all purchases turn out the way you want them to; this can cause problems and mean that you pay more money as time goes on.

    When you buy products and services, you have rights as a consumer. Your rights are called 'consumer guarantees' and mean that you can expect to get what you paid for and that the item will do what you expected. If it doesn't, you can:

    • Seek a repair, replacement, or refund

    • Cancel a service

    • Seek compensation for damage and loss

    Consumer guarantees cover products and services costing less than $40,000. Products or services costing more than $40,000 will be covered if they have been bought for personal or household use.

    How KCLS can help

    If you're having problems with products or services that you've purchased or items that you've hired, KCLS might be able to help.

    Credit Law

    When you enter into a contract for a loan or a credit card or when you hire items such as furniture and pay as you go, the business must make sure that they're not providing you with credit that's unsuitable.

    In some instances, this means that if you're already having difficulty paying bills and juggling debts, a credit provider must act responsibly and must not create further hardship for you.

    When dealing with businesses providing credit, they must:

    • Hold a licence to engage in credit activities

    • Make reasonable enquiries about your financial situation, requirements, and objectives, and take reasonable steps to verify your financial situation to ensure the product is not unsuitable

    How KCLS can help

    If you find yourself unable to meet the payments on your loan or credit card, you may be able to request a hardship variation. KCLS may also be able to assist you by investigating what other rights you may have under the contract.