Senior Territorians
Senior Territorians are vulnerable to a wide range of aggressive marketing tactics and a variety of rip-off schemes. Seniors are approached by a variety of different methods including phone calls, emails, text messages, social media messages and visiting sales people. To ensure that Senior Territorians understand their rights and know how to respond to such approaches we have developed the following information.
Home Care
The funding model for government-funded home care services has changed. For consumers who wish to remain in their homes, there is now more flexibility and choice in your home care arrangements. Most importantly, you now have the right to choose your own home care provider.
Competition and consumer laws apply to home care services just like any other product or service in Australia.
Northern Territory Consumer Affairs, in partnership with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) along with other national Fair Trading regulators, have developed a series of resources to help you understand your rights.
Check out the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission website here for a comprehensive understanding of how the law affects you and those that may offer you home care services. Be informed and choose well.
The NT Consumer Affairs also has information about your Home Care plan and the importance of using your consumer rights Home care - know your consumer rights PDF (387.1 KB)
Scams
Scams are fake and fraudulent schemes to steal money, goods and even your personal information. Luckily scams rely on you doing something and if you can identify something as a scam and not respond, they are usually unsuccessful.
The most important thing is to remember – if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
One of the most successful scams are romance scams. In 2023, $34.3 million was lost to romance scammers. These losses are only the losses that were reported to Scamwatch. The real losses would have been significantly higher. Romance scams are one of the most damaging types of scams because they prey on people’s loneliness and vulnerability. Their impact can be much more than just monetary. Check out our webpage for more information about these types of scams.
Door-to-door Sales People
To help keep nuisance salespeople from your door, NT Consumer Affairs is encouraging people to put a “Do Not Knock” sticker on their front and back doors. If someone knocks on your door and you have your “Do Not Knock” sticker up and the salesperson does not leave when you tell them to, they are breaking the law.
A postcard with information reminding people not to sign anything they don’t understand and to be careful of not falling for free gifts is available.
A copy of the sticker/sign, postcard and poster can be downloaded from here:
- Do not knock sign/sticker PDF (157.0 KB)
- Do not knock sign/sticker JPG (737.4 KB)
- It's OK to Walk Away Postcard PDF (790.4 KB)
- It's OK to Walk Away Postcard front JPG (1.7 MB)
- It's OK to Walk Away Postcard back JPG (103.0 KB)
- It's OK to Walk Away Poster PDF (574.5 KB)
- It's OK to Walk Away Poster JPG (1.5 MB)
You can also call us on 1800 019 319 to arrange for the material to be mailed to you for free.
More educational consumer videos can be found on our YouTube channel – NT Consumer Affairs.
We also have a Facebook page that will keep you up-to-date about emerging scams and issues, with particular focus in the Northern Territory. Connect with us today on Facebook by following our Facebook page here.
Renting in the Northern Territory
We provide information and advice to tenants, landlords and property managers about renting rights and responsibilities in the Northern Territory. We have a range of renting information on our website here but if you require additional information please don’t hesitate to contact us on (08) 8999 1999 or 1800 019 319.
Avoid a funeral R.I.P.-off
Have you seen those ads on TV telling you how affordable a funeral plan can be? They say you can put money aside now to take the pressure off your family later. There are different ways to pay for a funeral, but some may be more suitable for you than others.
One of the easiest ways to pay for a funeral is simply to save for it. If you set up a savings account, separate to your everyday account, then you can pay into it how much you want and as often as you want.
If you want to arrange funeral cover you could look at a pre-paid funeral plan, funeral insurance, or a funeral bond. But which one is best for you?
To avoid a funeral rip-off, watch a short video here.
Travelling Con Men
Territorians can be ripped off by 'bitumen bandits' and other dodgy con men offering cheap deals valid for 'today only'. Jobs such as sealing bitumen driveways, painting and roof repairs and are common tasks they offer at a cheap rate, often putting the resident under pressure to say yes. They will often ask for cash.
Travelling con men frequently disappear and leave the job unfinished or complete the work to a poor standard.
Protect yourself and your community and find out more information here on our website.
Other Issues
Senior Territorians, like all Territorians, can be impacted by a range of consumer issues. Check out our Consumer Menu to the right to find about more information about other issues. If you require more information please don’t hesitate to contact us on (08) 8999 1999 or 1800 019 319.