Canberrans have been receiving what they say are aggressive letters from the ACT Revenue Office after a review of their stamp duty concession. Debt support services say most people are trying to pay their debt off, where possible.
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00:00Steph was determined to make a new start after she separated from her ex-husband.
00:07And the ACT stamp duty concession scheme offered the door into a home.
00:11If I hadn't been able to access that concession, I wouldn't have been able to buy this place and have that security.
00:17After being granted the concession and buying the home, Steph was contacted by the ACT Revenue Office in the middle of last year,
00:25stating her concession was being reviewed and wanting an array of sensitive personal information.
00:31Really quite hard line, bordering on aggressive.
00:35I went through all of my old records, anything that I could to show that he had moved out,
00:41that there was no financial connection there or benefit even from our separation.
00:47After Steph submitted all her details, the Revenue Office sent back its decision, a debt bill of $35,000.
00:54Steph couldn't pay without going into more debt, but...
00:58I ended up getting legal advice and my lawyers advised me that if I could,
01:03I should make the payment because the interest will continue to accrue.
01:07Many people have contacted the ABC in response to a recent report
01:11about the ACT Revenue Office reviewing home buyer concessions.
01:15They told me I should sell my house or borrow money.
01:19We were still on the hook for $27,000.
01:22I think this approach is awful. The criteria is not fairly clear.
01:27It seems that this part of ACT Government has not learned the lessons of robodebt.
01:31The ACT Greens leader is critical of the communication and process of the Revenue Office review program.
01:37The irony in this whole thing is that this scheme is targeted at people who are already struggling a bit.
01:43It's clear from the people who've come forward that what they've experienced is very similar to what people described in the robodebt process
01:50and the stories we heard in the Royal Commission.
01:52Now, this is clearly on a different scale, but the principles are the same.
01:57Mr Attenbury wants to see the unanimously supported formal inquiry create space for people to tell their stories.
02:04They come to us quite distressed, quite embarrassed, feeling shameful that they have these debts.
02:09Ms Franklin says in nearly all financial counselling cases, people want to pay their debts, not avoid them.
02:16How people are informed is crucial.
02:19If people feel that somebody wants to help them and work through what the issues are, they will engage.
02:24If they feel like they're being treated poorly or they're scared, they are more likely to put their head in the sand and do nothing about it.
02:32Steph fought her case and won, but the emotional toll was huge and she's still thousands out of pocket.
02:38They are wrong. If me fighting this means that it doesn't happen to other people, then I think it's worth it.