Australian Capital Territory Numbered Regulations

RETIREMENT VILLAGES REGULATION 2013 (NO 5 OF 2013) - REG 32

A notice of amendment of recurrent charges given under the Act

, section 151 (Recurrent charges amended otherwise than by fixed formula—exceeding variation in CPI) must include the following:

        (a)     the name of the resident and address of the residential premises affected;

        (b)     the following statement as the first line of the notice in at least Arial bold font not less than 14 point:

‘ This is a notice of an amendment of recurrent charges (otherwise than in accordance with a fixed formula). The increase in those charges exceeds the increase in the Consumer Price Index ( CPI ) since those charges were last increased. ' ;

        (c)     the following statements:

              (i)     you are not required to pay any increase in your recurrent charges unless this notice complies with the requirements of the Retirement Villages Act 2012

, section 151 (Recurrent charges amended otherwise than by fixed formula—exceeding variation in CPI);

              (ii)     any increase in recurrent charges does not take effect until at least 60 days after you receive this notice;

              (iii)     this notice may be cancelled by a later notice and the later notice may provide for a lesser increase than any increase stated in this notice;

              (iv)     the operator of the village must not increase (or attempt to increase) the recurrent charges beyond any upper level stated in the village contract;

              (v)     the amendment of the charges does not take effect unless the residents whose recurrent charges will be affected by the amendment consent to it or the ACAT orders that it take effect;

              (vi)     the residents concerned must, within 30 days after receiving the notice, meet, consider and vote on the proposed amendment and tell the operator whether or not they consent to it;

              (vii)     if the operator is not told whether or not the residents consent to the proposed amendment within the 30-day period, the residents are taken to have refused consent;

              (viii)     the operator must give any information in relation to the proposed amendment that the residents committee or, if there is no residents committee, a resident reasonably requests for the purpose of deciding whether to consent to the amendment;

              (ix)     if the residents do not consent to the proposed amendment, the operator may apply to the ACAT for an order in relation to the proposed amendment;

              (x)     you may apply to the ACAT for an order directing the refund of overpaid recurrent charges on the grounds that an increase in the charges came into effect otherwise than in accordance with the Retirement Villages Act 2012

, division 7.3 (Recurrent charges) (which includes section 151);

              (xi)     an application for an ACAT order must be made not later than 1 year after the day the increase came into effect;

        (d)     the signature of the operator of the retirement village and the date of the signature.