The Andrews Labor Government has today released an exposure draft of a Bill to amend the Retirement Villages Act 1986 for public consultation – making retirement villages fairer for older Victorians and giving the industry more clarity.

Public consultation on the proposed reforms will make sure village residents, owners and operators, families of residents and anyone else involved in the sector can have a say – which means reforms will deliver the best outcomes for those they impact most.

For retirement village residents, the proposed amendments will strengthen key protections around exit fees, further clarify the obligations of village operators to their communities, and give residents more freedom to alter or renovate their units.

This includes a proposal to introduce a mandatory time limit for exit entitlements to be paid back to residents, as well as clarity on how operators must calculate and disclose fees and calculations to residents.

Contracts would need to be standardised and in plain language under the proposed reforms, and the legislation could allow certain terms – like charging a resident for an undisclosed fee in the village’s information statement – to be banned from contracts.

The Bill will also deliver stronger dispute resolution processes and increase the powers available to the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria to monitor and enforce compliance with the Act.

Under the proposal, operators would also be required to collect and report information about complaints and disputes to CAV each year and face fines for failure to do so.

The proposed reforms come after the Labor Government conducted a substantial review into the laws that govern retirement villages – which included consultations with community groups and others in the sector.

Further consultation in 2021 identified key issues faced by retirement village residents that the reforms seek to change.

The proposed reforms will be open for public consultation until 28 October. To have your say on the proposed reforms, visit engage.vic.gov.au/retirementvillagesact.