Retirement village sector to trial reforms
THE body representing retirement villages has unveiled voluntary reforms, amid calls from consumer and resident groups for a review the 20yearold legislation governing the sector.
The Retirement Villages Association (RVA), which represents 95% of all units in New Zealand, will now require operators to pay interest on the money owed to a former resident if their unit was not resold within nine months.
Other key changes include asking operators to stop charging weekly fees once a unit contract is terminated or the resident leaves, providing better support to residents wanting to move into another facility, removing ‘‘unfair’’ clauses from occupation rights agreements and clarifying how chattels are expected to be maintained.
The measures will be trialled for 12 months as part of the RVA’s best practice guidelines before being voted on at the organisation’s general meeting next year.
RVA president Graham Wilkinson said in a statement the sector had always accepted the need for improvements to the industry’s consumer protections regime ‘‘where they are feasible and make sense’’.
The group had said previously it was open to working with the Government on improving outcomes for consumers but expressed reservations about overregulation because it could lead to unintended consequences.
‘‘Developing and enforcing industry best practice is a more effective and fairer way to resolve these issues rather than legislative upheaval for the sake of it,’’ Mr Wilkinson said.
‘‘We’ve adopted a number of remits as best practice and we have expectations that people will trial these.’’
The organisation had appointed former National Party MP Jo Goodhew to its executive committee as an independent member to ensure older peoples’ views were represented, he said.
‘‘We’re prepared to explore other changes, but want to see a more evidencedbased approach before making decisions.’’
He warned against imposing changes to the sector’s commercial model because villages were longterm investments and any regulatory uncertainty could make them think twice about future investment. — RNZ