Have You Been Duped?

As the number of NDIS and Aged Care providers continues to increase, so too has the number of consultancy services looking to take advantage of your business.

As the number of NDIS and Aged Care providers continues to increase, so too has the number of consultancy services looking to take advantage of your business.

What to look out for:

If you are a business looking to operate in the NDIS or aged care markets, there are some things to look out for.

• Look them up on Australian Business Register (ABR). If they have been operating for 12-months and claim to have helped ‘hundreds of organisations’, be wary – inflated claims of success are a big red flag.
• Ask for experience and even qualifications. Consultants by trade are subject matter experts, so you are well within your rights to make sure they actually are or not.
• Ask for 3 references. Speak to businesses they have helped and see what they say about the service they received.

If you are a business and suspect you have already engaged an NDIS or Aged Care consulting service, ask yourself:

• Did they provided documentation that you suspect was either inferior or copied (including policies and procedures)?
• Did they uphold their contractual arrangements in terms of delivery; that is, have they delivered what they said they would?

The things you can do:

• It’s always best to ask the consultancy these questions. It’s always better to resolve these matters directly to understand where you stand and subsequently the consultancy’s position on the matter.
• Understand your rights under Australian Consumer Law and if appropriate, report the incident to the ACCC and make a consumer complaint;
• Seek legal recourse through your state government court system.