The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has given financial services providers extra time to share product reference data under the Consumer Data Right (CDR) as they adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Product reference data refers to information about a bank’s rates, fees and features of banking products, the ACCC said.
It said this data could be used by businesses such as comparison sites, to compare products in the market.
“The CDR will give consumers greater access to and control over their data,” ACCC said.
“It will improve consumers’ ability to compare and switch between products and services, and will encourage competition between service providers, leading not only to better prices for customers but also more innovative products and services.”
It said the major banks had been sharing product reference data since July 2019 with other financial services providers required to share product reference data by 1 July 2020.
The Commission said the three-month exemption was granted due to the impact of the pandemic.
It said the temporary exemptions, until 1 October, would apply to non-major financiers including non-major banks, building societies and credit unions, and would extend to non-primary brand products offered by the major banks.
ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court, said the Commission was granting the exemptions as acknowledgement of the intense resource requirements of the banking industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular non-major banks that may not be able to prioritise the requirements at this time.
“We understand that financial providers are dedicating many resources at present to support their customers” Ms Court said, “however we do encourage providers to share product reference information on a voluntary basis if they are in a position to do so.”
