16 July 2021

Don't forget to have your say on retirement village law reforms

You have until 21 July 2021 to have your say on retirement village law reforms. Consultation Regulatory Impact Statement 4 (CRIS 4) was issued in early June and builds on previous discussion generated through CRIS 1 to 3.

This final CRIS 4 includes:

• Proposals for a process to manage significant changes to a village.
• Improving protections for consumers in “off the plan sales” and leases.
• Clarifying when the Retirement Villages Act 1992 (WA) applies to aged care residential facilities.

CRIS 4 also seeks feedback on issues relating to dispute resolution, strata title retirement villages, building defects, insurance, and the provision of home care services in retirement villages. Watch the video and read the CRIS papers to find out more. 

What has happened so far in the consultation process?

• In 2020, we held meetings with industry and resident representatives to discuss possible reforms for fast-tracking. While useful discussions occurred, no reforms will be fast tracked separately and public consultation is now continuing through CRIS 4.
• CRIS 2 proposed the introduction of a time limit on how long residents must wait for exit payments. Based on the information we received through community consultation, we are now working with the WA Treasury Corporation to assess the financial impact of such a reform. The outcome of this process will inform our recommendations to the WA Government.

Make your opinion count

Your feedback is important to this process. We thank everyone who has already made a submission.

If you haven’t already done so, please read CRIS 4 and provide us with your comments. To help with your response, you can request a Word document with the consultation questions by emailing consultations@demirs.wa.gov.au.

You can choose to provide your views on as much of CRIS 4 as you like. In fact, you can also provide your views on any of the past CRIS documents.

Please send your submissions or questions about the retirement village law reforms to us by:

• Email: consultations@demirs.wa.gov.au
• Post: Retirement Villages Consultation, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety - Consumer Protection Division, Locked Bag 100, East Perth  WA  6892
• Telephone: 1300 304 054

If you think residents at your village would like to have their say about the consultation, please feel free to print this fact sheet and place it on your notice board. 

The WA Government will receive the recommendations for reform by the end of 2021.