‘I felt like a criminal’: Inquiry into debt collection likened to Robodebt

People caught up in a debt collection system likened to Robodebt are hoping an inquiry into the scheme will hold those responsible to account.

Eighteen months after Canberran Cathy Weeden and her kids purchased a home and left temporary accommodation, she received out-of-the-blue correspondence that she owed $50,000.

Ms Weeden is one of thousands of Canberrans who used the ACT government’s stamp duty concession scheme.

The scheme was set up in 2019 to help home buyers break into the market by reducing the tax when buying a property.

Ms Weeden said, after believing she was eligible for the concession, it was a shock to receive a notice otherwise.

“It was along the lines of ‘We believe you’re ineligible. Tell us why you think you are.’

“For the kids — the process of the move, not having a home for a period of time — it was traumatic for them. And they then have to watch their mother go through that and have to fight to stay where we are.

“I was wondering how we would be able to keep our home.”

‘What’s your problem?’

The ACT Revenue Office stated Ms Weeden was not eligible for the scheme under the self-assessment criteria, because she had prior property ownership and breached the income threshold while married.

She was charged backdated interest and a penalty.

Ms Weeden said the correspondence with ACT Revenue was incredibly dehumanising.

“I was told it’s black letter law. This is what it is. We don’t have discretion in this,” she said.

“So, essentially, ‘What’s your problem?’

“I couldn’t understand the lack of compassion.”

She said she had appealed the decision several times and had always been rejected.

Hopes for accountability in inquiry

Ms Weeden is one of several Canberrans who shared her experience today at a Legislative Assembly inquiry into the scheme, launched after the ABC reported on many new home buyers receiving aggressive and unclear demands for repayments.

“I really hope that someone’s going to be held to account,” she said.

“This had been raised and was being raised by many, many individuals.

“These are the people that we entrust with our society … And there was a complete disregard for the impact to individuals. When you would speak to the ACT Revenue Office, you’re a number. You’re a number and you are a revenue generation.”

Ms Weeden said the tone and language used in the written correspondence were absolutely appalling.

“The way they spoke in that correspondence, the way that made individuals feel, the complete lack of concern, regard for people’s wellbeing, for their mental wellbeing — it’s just not good enough,” she said.

Government acknowledges issues

Fronting the inquiry today, ACT Finance Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith acknowledged there were issues with the compliance program.

“We absolutely recognise that there have been some people who have had a really significant impact from the way this process has been implemented,” she said.

She said most people she had corresponded with were happy to pay the stamp duty if it was discovered they were mistakenly ineligible for the scheme but that they were “not happy about the length of time, the amount of interest, the penalty and the way the tax office communicated”.

“The compliance program itself is what’s caused the trauma. Not the original process.”

‘Progressively making changes’

Acting commissioner for ACT Revenue Lisa Holmes told the inquiry that several changes had already been made to the scheme.

These included instances involving domestic violence and separation, extending the payment period from three to eight weeks and sending out a form asking for more information before sending correspondence about ineligibility.

Ms Holmes said ACT Revenue was “progressively making changes to correspondence” such as including providing more reasons for decision making, looking into including the national debt helpline contact details and being “more trauma-informed in our approach”.

Hopes it’s never repeated

Ms Weeden decided to pay the full amount of her debt off in July 2025 to protect her mental health from the fluctuations of more drawn-out appeals.

But she hoped, by sharing her experience, lessons would be learnt for the future.

“I don’t want anyone else to have to go through what I did.”