Your rights

Consumer rights

When you buy goods or services, you have legal rights as a consumer.

You can find out more about your consumer rights at Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

If you need help

You can get help with your rights from any of these organisations:

• ombudsman services
• regulators like the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
• the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• fair trading offices or legal advice centres in each state

You can also read more about how to complain on the Moneysmart website.

Quality of goods and services

We don’t endorse Centrepay businesses or their goods and services. We aren’t responsible for the quality of the goods or services that a business sells you.

If you have concerns about the quality of goods and services, talk to the Centrepay business first.

If you can’t resolve an issue with the business, you can submit a complaint to us, and we’ll investigate it.

Payment options

Centrepay is voluntary. A business cannot force you to use Centrepay as a payment option. It must offer you at least one other payment option.

If a business forces you to use Centrepay, submit a complaint to us and we’ll investigate it.

Getting consent for a deduction

A business must always get your consent using a Centrepay Deduction Authority form or an approved verbal process before it:

• starts a new deduction
• restarts a cancelled deduction
• increases the target amount
• increases the deduction amount.

If you haven’t given your consent, talk to the business.

Businesses don’t need your consent to suspend, cancel, reduce, or add end dates or target amounts to your deduction. They can do this to help you prevent incorrect payments.

When a business has taken funds without your consent, it must refund the money to you even if you have outstanding bills with it. You can choose to leave the funds with the business to pay an outstanding bill.

Use our step-by-step guides to help you manage your money and Centrepay deductions.

It’s important you keep track of your deductions to make sure they’re correct. To change your deductions, use your Centrelink online account through myGov or your Express Plus Centrelink mobile app.

If you can’t resolve an issue with the business, provide feedback or submit a complaint to us and we’ll investigate it.

Incorrect Payments

If you’ve made an incorrect payment to a business, contact them and ask them to return it.

A business must return an incorrect payment or positive credit that will not reasonably be used to you. You don’t have to use the money with the business or leave the money in credit.

If the business refuses to return the incorrect payment or credit, you can either:

• call your regular payment line
• submit a complaint to us.

Centrepay deduction stopped

Your Centrepay deduction may stop for a few reasons.

You may have reached your target amount or end date, or a business may have stopped it.

We’ll tell you in writing when a deduction has been set up, changed, cancelled, suspended, and resumed.

It’s important to keep your contact details up to date so you get letters from us.

Register to get your letters online

You can register to get your letters online using either myGov or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app.

If you choose to get your letters online, you’ll also get an SMS to let you know about the letter. You won’t get an SMS if you’ve made the changes to your deductions through your online channel.

Read how to subscribe to electronic messaging.

Centrepay transaction fee

Centrepay is a free and voluntary bill paying service for Centrelink customers.

We charge businesses a transaction fee for each deduction they receive. A business must not pass this transaction fee on to you, or any other costs related to the use of Centrepay.

If you think a business is charging you to use Centrepay as a payment option, talk to the business.

If you can’t resolve an issue with the business, submit a complaint to us and we’ll investigate it.

Complaints and feedback

If you’ve talked to the business and can’t resolve your concern with them, you can submit a complaint to us.