ING Bank has paid penalties totalling $53,280 for allegedly failing to comply with Consumer Data Right (CDR) rules and making a false or misleading representation to consumers, after the ACCC issued it with four infringement notices.
In a statement, the ACCC said that ING Bank allegedly missed three important legislated deadlines and made a misleading statement to consumers on its website about the reliability and security of its CDR service.
Under the CDR rules — an economy-wide data sharing program — ING was required to be in a position to share data for certain financial products by specific deadlines, including data relating to residential home loans by 1 November 2021, and data relating to joint accounts by 1 October 2022.
However, the ACCC alleged that ING Bank did not meet all of these obligations as required, meaning it could not facilitate certain consumer data sharing and therefore it potentially denied its customers the full benefits of the CDR program.
“Under the CDR, consumers have a right to safely and securely share certain data with accredited providers, including fintech firms and other third parties, who in turn can use that data to create better customised products and services for the consumer,” ACCC commissioner Peter Crone said.
“Unlike customers of most other banks, many ING customers were not able to fully benefit from the services of accredited businesses using their CDR data.
“Allowing consumers to share CDR data relevant to these services, including those relating to financial management and comparison tools, is important, especially given current cost of living pressures and rising interest rates,” Mr Crone said.
Moreover, the ACCC also alleged that ING Bank breached the Australian Consumer Law by making a false or misleading representation on its website.
Between 28 October 2021 and 2 February 2022, ING Bank represented its accredited person request service had been operational since 1 July 2021 and was therefore a reliable and secure system for customers to use to share data, when this was not the case.
“All CDR participants are warned that any claims about the CDR must be accurate and able to be substantiated, or they risk breaching the Australian Consumer Law, which can attract significant penalties if the ACCC commences court proceedings,” Mr Crone said.
ING Bank removed the allegedly false or misleading representation from its website after the ACCC raised its concerns.
