ANZ cops credit card class action

Legal firm Phi Finney McDonald has filed the lawsuit in the Federal Court on behalf of Daniel Tour and other customers, over alleged misconduct from the bank from 1 July 2010 to 1 January 2019.

The firm has claimed ANZ harmed customers by charging interest on purchases that had been repaid in a timely matter and retroactively charging them interest on what had previously been interest-free purchases.

Further, the claim has alleged the manner in which ANZ charged interest also made it impossible for the average credit cardholder to understand how interest would be calculated and how much would be charged.

Charging retroactive interest on credit cards with an interest-free period has been outlawed since 1 January 2019, through an amendment to the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2019.

The action, backed by Woodsford Litigation Funding, has included all ANZ interest-free credit cardholders who paid interest between 1 July 2010 and 1 January 2019.

ANZ acknowledged the proceedings in a statement on Wednesday (1 December) morning.

“The class action is understood to allege that ANZ’s credit card contracts were unfair, and contravened the Australian Securities and Investments Commission [ASIC] Act,” the bank stated.

“ANZ will review the claim and will provide any update as required.”

The class action has come days after ASIC filed a lawsuit against ANZ over its home loan introducer program. 

Westpac has also faced legal proceedings from the regulator, with ASIC filing six civil penalty actions against it on Tuesday (30 November). 

[Related: La Trobe to pay $750k penalty for 'misleading' marketing]