Politics · Australia · 9 hrs ago
Victorian Labor pledges to ban strata managers’ insurance kickbacks
Victorian Labor plans to ban commissions paid to strata managers for building insurance, repairs and other services.
The payments, often called kickbacks, are currently legal, although managers have had to disclose them since 2021.
They affect apartment, unit and townhouse owners, with more than 500,000 properties under strata management in Victoria.
Hidden commissions can increase owners’ costs and create a conflict between managers and the people they serve.
Victoria’s expert panel recommended a ban in 2025, and a New South Wales review also called for one.
Labor would create a Consumer Affairs taskforce to enforce the rules, after the agency issued four infringement notices and no prosecutions against owners’ corporations over the past decade.
The pledge is due to be announced ahead of Victoria’s November state election; Labor says it would also examine brokers’ commissions.
Victorian Labor has pledged to ban strata managers from receiving commissions and payments linked to building insurance and other services.
The party also plans to establish a taskforce within Consumer Affairs Victoria to enforce new strata rules.
The pledge responds to concerns that hidden commissions create conflicts of interest and contribute to costs for apartment owners.
More than 500,000 properties in Victoria are strata-managed.
Strata managers have been legally required to disclose commissions since 2021, but a survey found many owners did not know whether their manager received one.
- Who
- Victorian Labor has pledged the reforms. Consumer Affairs Minister Tim Richardson announced the proposal.
- What
- Labor plans to ban strata managers from receiving commissions and payments for building insurance, repairs and other services, and to create an enforcement taskforce.
- When
- The pledge was due to be revealed over the weekend of October 24, 2026.
- Where
- Victoria, Australia.
- Why
- Labor says hidden costs drive up strata fees, while critics say commissions create conflicts of interest.
Victorian Labor
Strata Owners Alliance advocates
Enforcement model
Victorian Labor
Labor proposes a dedicated taskforce within Consumer Affairs Victoria to police the new rules.
Strata Owners Alliance advocates
Advocates have called for an independent strata commissioner, similar to the model in NSW.
Ban on commissions
Victorian Labor
Labor pledges to prohibit strata managers from taking commissions and payments.
Strata Owners Alliance advocates
The alliance supports an outright legislative ban on insurance commissions.
Strata managers became legally required to disclose whether they receive commissions.
A Victorian expert panel review recommended a ban on kickbacks.
Victorian Labor was due to reveal its pledge to ban commissions and establish a taskforce.
- Properties
- More than 500,000 properties are strata-managed in Victoria.
- Owner awareness
- 59 per cent of Victorian owners surveyed said they did not know whether their strata manager received a commission.
- Disclosure rule
- Strata managers have been required to disclose commissions since 2021.
- Enforcement record
- Consumer Affairs issued four infringement notices against owners’ corporations between July 2016 and June 2026.
What people are saying
If you’re paying strata fees, you deserve a manager who works for you – not one pocketing a kickback,
We’re … putting a cop on the beat, so dodgy managers get caught,
All sides of politics need to get behind banning these perverse and ethically indefensible but unfortunately currently legal kickbacks,
Information can be disclosed yet incomprehensible, overwhelming, misleading, and simply not useful,